The merger of Greater Kaohsiung on 25th December 2010 also combined the former Sewerage Systems Office of Kaohsiung City Government and Water Resource Department of Kaohsiung County to be the new Water Resources Bureau. With 2.77 million people and 2946 km2 area, Kaohsiung has become the largest of the five major cities of Taiwan. On 19th September 2010, Typhoon Fanapi attacked Taiwan with fierce storm and caused serious floods in former Kaohsiung City and County. The disaster also highlighted the importance of viewing Kaohsiung City and County as a whole on issue of water management. The City-and-County merger brought the new turning point for Kaohsiung to make progress in flood prevention and water management by ceasing the arguments about governance right of rivers.
There are Love River, Cianjhen River, Houjing Creek, Gaopoing Creek, Er-ren Creek, Agongdian Creek, Dianbao Creek, and 113 announced regional drainages in Kaohsiung City. The condition of every drainage system is different. In densely-populated areas, there is often no proper space for new construction. Therefore, installation of flood detention pools in the upstream areas is regarded as the most effective way for flood prevention. It is expected that the the A Flood Detention Pool of Dianbao Creek and Baoye Village Flood Detention Pool will be completed respectively in 2011 and 2012. Additionally, the construction of Shanzihding Drainage Flood Detention Pool and B Flood Detention Pool of Dianbao Creek will also start in 2012.
As to the 89 potential mudflows in the mountain areas, our bureau will budget 100 million NTD every year for soil & water conservation in hillside areas. The plan is estimated to benefit 176 hectare of lands, protect 1.2 billion NTD of production values, reduce soil erosion by 12,000 m3, and maintain 4.5 km of roads and 23 bridges.
During 2011 to 2014, “Interception Improvement of Villages in Renwu District (2nd Phase)” and “Improvement of Fongshan Creek Trunk (1st Phase of Section between Boai Bridge and Dajhih Bridge)” will be carried out in order to enhance the drainage function and flood prevention abilities within the flood-prone areas in Renweu, Fongshan, Gangshan, and Meinong.
Enhancement of drainage and flood prevention abilities is another important issue of our city. Water-level alarm system and auto-monitoring systems will be installed in pump stations to achieve the goal. Dredging and cleaning of waterways is also very important to keep the water flows smoothly. To establish a foresighted procedure of disaster alarm, relief, settlement, and recovery, the Water Information Center of our city has expanded its equipments and information integration system, combing with GPS system for mobile pumps, water-level gauges, and settlement of alarm value for drainage. With these improvements, the efficiency of disaster alarm and emergency response of Kaohsiung City will be greatly enhanced.
Of course, to improve the disaster prevention mechanism, the abilities of independent disaster prevention of the communities and citizens should be enhanced too. Our bureau will strengthen the education of local geography, disaster-prone locations, and escape plans to the citizens. By understanding contents of escape plans, organization members, mission groups, escape routes and shelters, the citizens will finally establish strong disaster prevention systems in their own communities.
In recent years, the redevelopment of Kaohsiung City’s hydrological environment has been continually carried on since the pollution remediation of Love River. The rate of household connection to sewer systems has reached 61.04% in December 2010. Along with the improvement of water quality, the riverbank landscapes have also been redeveloped. The successful Love River Experience, plus Kaohsiung Ecological Corridor consisting of wetlands and flood detention pools, made Kaohsiung an exemplary city of river restoration in Taiwan. Presently, the household connection rate to sewer system in Greater Kaohsiung after City-and-County merger is 38.42%. Our bureau will continue to construct sewerage systems for water pollution remediation to bring the people a clean homeland. It is estimated that the total length of sanitary sewers will reach 1223.64 km and the household connection rate will be 51.9% in year 2014. Additionally, the reuse plan for recycled water of “Fongshan Creek Sewage Treatment Plant” and “Central District Sewage Treatment Plant” has been carried out to save water resources and to achieve the ultimate goal of establishing a homeland of sustainable development.
