GEGA ENGINEERS ＆ CONSULTANTS CO., LTD. assisted the Kinmen County Environmental Protection Bureau (hereinafter referred to as the EPB) in implementing the "Plan for the Inspection and Control of Water Pollution Sources and the Collection and Audit of Effluent Charge in Kinmen County for the Year 2023"" (hereinafter referred to as the Plan). The implementation period was from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023, with a budget of NTD 3.248 million. The aim of this Plan is to conduct water quality monitoring and scientific analysis of environmental background data in the Huqu watershed of Kinmen County. Its objective is to execute pollution control and scientific investigations in the region by understanding the relative relationship between environmental geography and hydrological water quality data. Additionally, the Plan proposes strategies and recommendations for water quality improvement in the Huqu watershed of Kinmen County. Overall, this document outlines the work content and achievements of the Plan.
1. Investigation and sampling testing Operations for water pollution sources, and enhancement of pollution source control and tracking
(1) Assisting the review operations for industrial water pollution source permit applications
Assisted in reviewing 88 cases, with review comments submitted within an average of 7 days for each case. The review patterns include 11 cases of ground water discharge permits, 18 cases of simple discharge permits, 56 cases of runoff wastewater reduction plan reviews, and 3 cases of storage permits. Among these cases, there were 55 new applications, 11 modifications, 13 extensions, and 9 cases involving both extension and modification.
(2) Water pollution control business functional evaluation and historical functional evaluation review:
After inspecting the abnormality in disciplinary records and declaration materials, one water pollution listed enterprise was selected for functional evaluation (Kinmen Royal Winery Co., Ltd.). The preliminary assessment was completed on May 23, followed by inviting expert scholars (Professor Zhang Wei-Chin from National Yunlin University of Science and Technology) for a reevaluation on July 25. A negotiation meeting was held on August 15, where the company was requested to submit an improvement plan. Finally, the company submitted the improvement plan on November 3. Additionally, during the years 2020 to 2022, a reassessment was conducted for three entities that underwent functional evaluation. Among these entities, the sewage and drainage system in the Jincheng Urban Planning Area requires repair and equipment updates due to budgetary constraints. To address this issue, improvement Plans are scheduled for implementation in the year 2025. Two of these entities have been included as subjects for continued monitoring and improvement in the following year.
(3) Assisting regular monitoring and reporting review operations
In the jurisdiction, there were a total of 126 regular monitoring and reporting documents from businesses and sewage system operators. The completion rate of reports by operators was 100%. The Plan had fully assisted in reviewing all documents, and 2 of them required correction due to incomplete report content. Operators had been notified to provide the necessary corrections.
(4) Inspection and sampling of business and livestock industries
In the year 2023, a total of 410 inspections were conducted monthly for the supervision of business operations and sewage systems, with 25 inspections which should be performed each month. The achievement rate exceeded 100% for the entire year. Additionally, 32 samplings of effluent from supervised businesses were completed, achieving a 100% success rate. Furthermore, all inspection sampling test results for effluent were found to be compliant, with no instances of non-compliance identified.
(5) Environmental water quality monitoring
In the year 2023, quarterly water quality monitoring was conducted for 15 rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. The analyzed water quality parameters included pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), suspended solids (SS), fecal coliforms, ammonia nitrogen, total phosphorus, and others. The report indicated a widespread eutrophication phenomenon in the Kinmen Reservoir. Regarding the strategy for improving water quality in the jurisdiction, efforts were made to channel livestock wastewater into the sewage system and to promote the resource utilization of livestock manure. Additionally, there was a focus on increasing user connections to the public sewage system and installing facilities to divert sewage during dry weather conditions. The pollutants that had entered the reservoir were removed through the dredging of reservoir sediment. Before the flood season, regional drainage facilities increased the frequency of removing aquatic plants and sludge. Farmers were encouraged to use organic fertilizers, adopt rational fertilization practices, and participate in reforestation to reduce pollutants washed into the reservoir during rainfall
(6) Automatic monitoring (visual inspection) and online transmission of waste (polluted) water
On-site inspections were conducted for four facilities, including Taiwan Power Company's Tashan Power Plant, Kinmen Water Treatment Plant Seawater Desalination Plant, Taihu Water Resources Recycling Center, and the sewage and drainage system in the Jincheng Urban Planning Area. The confirmation reports for the installation of automatic monitoring (inspection) facilities at each facility were consistent with the recorded content. The monitoring frequency and data retention practices were in compliance with regulatory standards. In the year 2023, an additional focus was placed on verifying measurement values using standard solutions for the detected instruments, ensuring that they fall within the allowable margin of error.
2. Promotion of livestock manure resource utilization
(1) Overall resource utilization results of animal husbandry
Within the jurisdiction, the approved irrigation volume for the utilization plan of slurry and sludge on 15 farmlands is statistically recorded as 7,809 metric tons and the actual irrigation volume was 5,199 metric tons (66.6% of the approved irrigation volume). The estimated reductions include 23.4 tons/year of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), 62.4 tons/year of suspended solids (SS), and 2.0 tons/year of ammonia nitrogen. For effluent water recovery, seven farms within the jurisdiction had an approved recovery volume of 3,781 metric tons/year, and the actual recovered water volume was 2,576 metric tons (62.4% of the approved recovery volume).
(2) Regional monitoring of slurry and sludge quality, soil Quality, and groundwater quality
In the year 2023, monitoring was conducted on the concentration of slurry and sludge at three farms: Sinon Livestock Farm, Fuwang Livestock Farm, and Zili Livestock Farm. The detected concentrations of total nitrogen were 678 mg/L, 656 mg/L, and 423 mg/L, with an average concentration of 585 mg/L. These concentrations were all below the standards for application in fertilization, set at 900 mg/L according to the guidelines for applying livestock wastewater to farmland. Additionally, the concentrations of copper and zinc, heavy metals in the soil, were tested and found to be below the shutdown standards, measuring 102 mg/L and 221 mg/L, respectively. Over the past five years (from 2019 to 2023), the results of heavy metal testing in the soil of farmland within the jurisdiction have not exceeded the shutdown standards.
3.Water pollution control regulations promotion seminar and collection of water pollution control fees
(1) Legal Promotion and Briefing Seminar
This training session had a total of 17 participating units, with a combined attendance of 19 individuals. Some livestock operators and businesses in Kinmen County received assistance from designated agents such as the Pig Farming Association and operational agents for the declaration of water pollution fees. All designated agents participated in the briefing session, where the listed businesses became familiar with the system's operation. The session included providing answers to common questions and sharing the latest information. This helped the businesses understand key aspects of water pollution fee declaration and, in turn, encouraged and guided them to comply with the regulations. The survey responses from participating units indicated that all units expressed a level of satisfaction "satisfied " or above, achieving a satisfaction rate of 100% for the organization of this meeting.
(2) Guidance, verification, and urging collection for water pollution control fee collection
In the second quarter of 2022, 47 businesses reported water pollution fees, totaling 134,942 NTD. In the first quarter of 2023, 44 businesses reported water pollution fees, totaling 114,920 NTD. Regarding the audit of water pollution fees, 8 businesses were audited, and among them, 4 businesses needed to recalculate their water pollution fees. The earliest audit period dates back to the first quarter of 2019, with a total of 25 periods audited. The audit results indicated that 12 periods require corrections, resulting in an error rate of 48%.
4.Maintain the operation of the water environment patrol team and public participation
(1) Matchmaking the county's otter patrol team. In 2023, the Otter Patrol Team from Xinyi New Residential Quarter successfully joined the Water Patrol Team in the county. The distinctive feature of this team is the frequent presence of otter traces in their patrol area. Their patrol route extends from the Taihu Lake Reservoir to the Eight-Two Base. During the patrol, team members observed otter traces and set up environments to facilitate otter activity.
(2) During 55 instances of water patrol activities, all patrol teams participated in water maintenance activities on the specified dates, totaling 643 team members. Simultaneously, during otter patrols, traces of otter footprints were discovered in 8 locations. The cleanup activities included items such as PET bottles, aluminum foil/pouches, plastic bottle caps, plastic bags, and other garbage. The primary focus of the cleanup was approximately 12.5 kg of PET bottles, followed by 8.4 kg of plastic bags, 8.2 kg of aluminum foil/pouches, 7.2 kg of aluminum cans, and 34.3 kg of other garbage, totaling 70.6 kg of waste removed.
(3) The conclusions of the consultation meetings for the upper and lower halves of the current year for the patrol team operations are as follows: In the first half of the year, it was decided to provide basic equipment (rain shoes) for new volunteers and assist in determining the sizes of rain shoes for them. Additionally, group insurance for patrol team volunteers was discussed, (covering accidental death, disability insurance benefits, and injury medical insurance benefits). The conclusions of the meeting for the second half of the year are as follows: (a) Each patrol team has no amendments or corrections to the evaluation plan for the 2024 th Kinmen County Water Environmental Patrol Team competition. The points will be calculated according to the evaluation plan criteria. (b) A survey was conducted until November to confirm the list of water patrol team members with insufficient patrol hours (less than 20 hours or 12 sessions). Those who do not meet the requirements are requested to inform the water patrol team members promptly and make up the patrol hours to avoid suspension. (c) Requesting GEGA ENGINEERS ＆ CONSULTANTS CO., LTD. to compile the volunteer hours’ certificates needed for water patrol team members to facilitate the issuance of volunteer hours’ certificates at the end of the year.
(4) During the World Water Quality Monitoring Day event and the Seed Teacher Training for Water Patrol, a total of 6 teams with 83 participants were involved. In the event, there was an explanation of simple water quality testing to help team members understand how to use the testing kits. In the Seed Teacher Training, each team engaged in real-time extensive group discussions, focusing on the design of team emblems. Teams took the stage to share their design concepts and provide explanations regarding the current status and patrol areas of the water patrol teams. Additionally, assistance was provided in creating proof of attendance certificates for the seed teachers.
(5) The training courses, including "Patrol Skills and Safety (Basic Course)" and "Ecological Survey and Otter Patrol Skills (Professional Course)," were attended by a total of 65 participants from 6 water patrol teams. The training aimed to enhance the safety awareness of patrol team members through safety promotion, ensuring the safety and professional competence in carrying out patrol duties.
(6) In the year 2003, assistance was provided each quarter to the Environmental Protection Bureau for publishing news related to the Water Patrol Teams. A total of 4 news articles about the Water Patrol Teams had been published with assistance.
5.Permit Integration Operations
In the fiscal year 2023, on April 18th, an internal education and training session on environmental permit integration was conducted with a total of 17 participants. Additionally, a check of the pollution tri-state flow diagrams was carried out for 5 businesses. The on-site audit confirmed that the actual operations of the businesses align with the items specified in their permit documents and do not require any corrections.
6. Self-evaluation of EPA assessment results
According to the evaluation criteria and weighting of relevant items set by the Environmental Protection Administration for the year 2023, progress control measures had been implemented for each evaluation item. During the review process, it was observed that the county lacked corresponding performance indicators for certain evaluation items. For instance, in the evaluation item "Number of Approved Household Resource Recycling Cases," the county was not assigned a target number. In the evaluation item "Environmental Engineers Conducting Inspection of Water Pollution Certification Business," the county did not have any cases requiring engineer inspections this year. Additionally, in the evaluation of "Improvement of Water Quality in 7 Demonstration Rivers with Severe Ammonia Nitrogen Pollution," the county was not included. To address these situations, the county proposed adjusting the weighting of evaluation criteria to the Environmental Protection Administration. After the adjustment, the total score was 89.50 points. It was anticipated that the self-evaluation score at the end of 2023 will be 67.91 points, and based on the weighted score calculation formula (67.91 * (100.00/89.50)), the weighted score was 75.88 points.
