The Environmental Protection Agency, Executive Yuan (EPA) has since 2011 coordinated fugitive dust prevention work jointly conducted by the Water Resources Agency, MOEA, (WRA), Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan (COA), and the local governments. In order to alleviate river fugitive dust, the EPA has coordinated the WRA, COA and local governments in jointly promoting various fugitive dust prevention work in accordance with the labor of division of powers and responsibilities in the “River Fugitive Dust Prevention and Improvement Promotion Plan (2012-2015)” approved by the Executive Yuan on January 7, 2013, thereby maintaining the comfortable living environment for residents along the river coast. In 2017, fugitive dust prevention was included in the “Action Plan for Air Pollution Control” items approved by the Executive Yuan, listing river fugitive dust prevention and control as a policy implementation focus.
The EPA also listed Jhuoshuei River, Kaoping River, Beinan River, and Liwu River as the focused rivers of remediation. This plan collected domestic and foreign fugitive dust inhibition techniques and proposed suitable and feasible practices according to the domestic river characteristics. This year, four project meetings and 13 on-site investigations were held. In cooperation with the on-site activities of relevant units, the respective units were coordinated through the coordination platform to confirm labor of division before and after the flood period, various prevention and control techniques in fugitive dust-prone regions, and various operating control schedules, and review river fugitive dust prevention and control and improvement promotion effectiveness.
In order to alleviate the impact of river fugitive dust, the Executive Yuan approved the “Action Plan for Jhuoshuei River Fugitive Dust Prevention and Control and Improvement” on April 20, 2018. Through three structures: “water conservation,”, “afforestation” and “disaster contingency prevention,” the control momentum of the WRA, COA (Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Agriculture and Food Agency, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, and Soil and Water Conservation Bureau, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan), EPA, and local governments (Changhua County and Yunlin County) was integrated to actively conduct Jhuoshuei River fugitive dust prevention and improvement work.
The river fugitive dust frequencies of the respective rivers were lower in 2018 compared to 2017. In particular, Jhuoshuei River decreased by 15% (fifty-nine times in 2017 and fifty times in 2018), Kaoping River decreased by 86% (seven times in 2017 and once in 2018), Beinan River decreased by 71% (seven times in 2017 and twice in 2018). From January to September, 2019, twenty river fugitive dust events took place. Among them, due to the impact of a typhoon’s peripheral effect in mid-September, two fugitive dust events in Beinan River, two in Kaoping River, and nine in Jhuosheui River took place (a total of thrity times in September). Nevertheless, the total number of fugitive dust events decreased compared to the same period in the previous year (twenty-two times).
In 2018, the concentrations of suspended particulates (PM10) from the test stations near the respective rivers showed a downward trend in 2018 compared to 2017. In particular, the Beinan River Taitung Station decreased by 6.4%, the Jhuosheui River Mailiao Station decreased by 4.0%, the Lunbei Station decreased by 7.8%. In addition, due to the impact of increased rainfall from March to June, 2019 compared to the same period the previous year, the stations’ average values from January to September 2019 decreased compared to the same period in 2018, with Jhuoshuei River Mailiao Station and Lunbei Station decreasing by 17% and 23%, respectively.
About 2,100 hectares underwent river bare land improvement and shelter forest new plantation and tending in 2018, an increase of 60% (1,200 hectares) compared to 2017. The substantial increase in river bare land improvement areas contributed to reduced occurrences of river fugitive dust. Take Kaoping River for instance, only 73 hectares underwent improvement in 2017, but 593 hectares were completed by 2018.
Through this plan, past river fugitive dust event data were analyzed. According to professional meteorological data and determined by season, climatic conditions and other factors, starting October 1, 2018, the river fugitive dust forecast trial operations for Jhuoshuei River and Kaoping River were conducted, providing a 7-day, 3-day, and 1-day air quality forecast to river management agencies, local governments, etc. to carry out preventive operations. In addition, when the PM10 concentration at the river fugitive dust forecast stations reached a certain level, warning messages were sent to the concerned personnel to strengthen the intensity of fugitive dust response operations.
This year, the “River Fugitive Dust Prevention and Control Workshop” underwent planning and implementation, with the successful cases of Da-an River, Dajia River, Jhuoshuei River, Kaoping River, Beinan River, and Lanyang River as models provided to the respective units to carry out various bare land improvements and fugitive dust prevention and control practices and understand “suiting measures to local conditions and time” applicable for the respective rivers, which shall serve as a reference for subsequent formulation of fugitive dust prevention and control strategies, perfect river bare land improvements and engage in fugitive dust prevention and control practices.
