Keelung: The Ministry of Environment (MOENV) announced on Wednesday that it has identified a significant pollution source in the ongoing investigation into oil contamination in the Keelung River. The source has been traced to a repair depot operated by a maintenance contractor for Kuo-Kuang Motor Transport.
According to Focus Taiwan, MOENV inspectors discovered that the depot was discharging wastewater without a permit and operating without necessary treatment facilities. Additionally, the facility was found storing oil without the required spill-containment structures, constituting serious violations of the Water Pollution Control Act. The Keelung Environmental Protection Bureau acted immediately by citing the company and ordering a halt to its operations.
The ministry has also identified other potential pollution sources, with an environmental task force and police currently gathering evidence. The investigation was initiated after oily odors were detected in tap water across several districts in Keelung and parts of New Taipei since late November. In response, MOENV held an emergency meeting, directing Taiwan Water Corp. (TWC) to bolster early-warning measures.
These measures include increased patrols, maintaining oil booms and absorbent pads at intake points, conducting raw-water odor checks every two hours, accelerating the deployment of new in-water oil-monitoring sensors, and evaluating whether raw water should be routed through the Xinshan Reservoir for quality stabilization.
In a related development, Keelung authorities on Wednesday alleviated concerns of an imminent water cutoff after white foamy pollutants appeared in a drainage channel in Nuannuan District on Tuesday. TWC President Lee Tin-lai stated that the Xishi Reservoir, which supplies Nuannuan and parts of Ren’ai District, currently holds about 185,000 cubic meters of water. With around 17,000 cubic meters flowing in daily and assistance from other treatment plants, it is supplying approximately 16,000 cubic meters per day, ensuring about 10 days of stable service.
TWC has suspended intake from the Keelung River since November 27 and will only resume operations once the sludge at the polluted site is cleared and water samples from upstream to the Badu pumping station show no safety concerns. A mobile lab at the Xinshan Water Treatment Plant can screen for 236 chemical substances, allowing intake to restart within two days once approved by the city government.
If contamination persists, TWC plans to bypass the affected section by laying 1.5 km of temporary pipeline to upstream sources, a process expected to take about 10 days. Keelung previously reported that the broader contamination incident affected more than 71,000 households across five districts, with relief subsidies announced for bottled water purchases, medical expenses from symptoms linked to contaminated tap water, and water-tower cleaning completed before December 31.