Hsinchu will face severe water shortages in 15 years; environmental groups call for a review of the total volume of three major development projects

The original Phase 3 Hsinchu Science Park zone expropriation case goes before the urban planning committee again today (the 28th), with environmental groups and Hsinchu residents fighting to the end! Greater Hsinchu development projects are coming one after another. Recently there is the "Hsinchu Science Park Baoshan Phase 2" TSMC expansion project, and if the "Zhubei Taiwan Knowledge Park" and the "original Phase 3 Hsinchu Science Park" and other development projects are added, the Greater Hsinchu area will face a water shortage crisis due to excessive industrial water use.

Environmental groups point out that in as little as 3 to 5 years, water shortages in the Greater Hsinchu area will become the norm, and there must be a review of whether existing large-scale development projects should be reduced in scale or withdrawn, so as to avoid increasing the burden on water use and even discharging wastewater that affects water quality.

The self-rescue associations that have struggled for years against Phase 3 Hsinchu Science Park and the Taiwan Knowledge Park say that this year the second rice crop in Taoyuan, Hsinchu and Miaoli was cut off from irrigation, and next year fallowing is also likely. If development continues, in the future there will be no fields to farm and no water to use. They hope the government can withdraw the development projects and return the land to residents.

Excessive development will cause severe water shortages in the Greater Hsinchu area in 15 years

The long-disputed original Phase 3 Hsinchu Science Park zone expropriation case will go before the Ministry of the Interior's urban planning committee again this afternoon. The area involved in this case is more than 300 hectares near the Industrial Technology Research Institute in Zhudong. However, the Greater Hsinchu area also recently has the "Hsinchu Science Park Baoshan Phase 2" TSMC 2-nanometer process expansion project, which will increase water consumption by 120,000 tons per day. Environmental groups believe this will cause a water supply and demand crisis in the Greater Hsinchu area.

According to the draft Hsinchu County territorial plan proposed by the Hsinchu County Government in February this year, with the "Hsinchu Science Park Baoshan Phase 2" plus the disputed "Zhubei Taiwan Knowledge Park" and the "original Phase 3 Hsinchu Science Park" and other development projects, the Greater Hsinchu area's daily domestic and industrial water consumption will reach as high as 881,900 tons in 2036. But the Water Resources Agency estimates daily water supply at only 620,000 metric tons, a difference of 261,900 tons between the two, creating a huge water supply gap.