Kunyu Landfill Pollution Crisis: 500 hectares around Miaoli's Organic Pumpkin Village at Risk, Villagers Brave Cold Nights to Protest
A waste landfill is encroaching on Longsheng Village in Zaoqiao, Miaoli! This organic village, famous for its pumpkin festival and known for its peaceful, unassuming way of life, depends entirely on the irrigation reservoir of Mingde Reservoir for its fertile fields. Now, however, a massive pit has been dug nearby, about to bury over 8,000 metric tons of waste - not only will the entire village suffer, but areas within 500 hectares around it will also be polluted.
The Kunyu industrial waste landfill case had originally been stillborn 16 years ago, when then-Magistrate Liu Cheng-hung rejected the application and revoked the license. Now it has made a comeback, and the Miaoli County Government astonishingly approved the trial operation plan in just 10 days of review, without notifying the villagers. This sparked protests by over a hundred Longsheng Village residents who formed a self-rescue association, only to be countersued by Kunyu. Incensed, they decided to station themselves permanently at the landfill entrance to fight, vowing to protect their homeland.
Undaunted by the waves of cold fronts, they fumed, "This case has plagued our village for nearly 20 years. This year, we can't even enjoy a proper New Year celebration."
16 years ago, Kunyu obtained development consent through deception; the company's license was revoked
Kunyu purchased over ten hectares of land at the landfill site in the 90th year of the Republic of China (2001), but to circumvent the regulations requiring environmental impact assessments for landfills over 2 hectares, it applied for only a 1.9-hectare burial plan. When it proposed trial operations in the 94th year (2005), it buried two batches of waste. Due to the foul odor, residents realized something was terribly wrong and immediately gathered to protest.
Kunyu claimed it had obtained residents' consent before starting burial, producing stamped consent forms. Only then did the villagers realize they had been deceived. It turned out that Kunyu, citing a labor shortage, had recruited dozens of villagers to assist with development - a few survey lines and a few holes dug earned them several thousand yuan each, and everyone rushed to join. They thought the stamps were for collecting wages, but what they actually stamped were "development consent forms."
The deceived and furious villagers filed a lawsuit in court. In addition, the newly appointed Magistrate Liu Cheng-hung at the time believed the case would cause enormous damage to Miaoli, so he rejected the application several times in succession. The company refused to accept the ruling and petitioned the central government, but the Environmental Protection Administration's appeal committee upheld the rejection. Liu Cheng-hung then used that decision as grounds to revoke Kunyu's license.
The nightmare repeats: County government approves in just 10 days, villagers protest and get sued
Sixteen years later, villagers never expected that the Kunyu industrial waste landfill would restart its trial operation plan on December 21 of last year (2020). The Miaoli County Government, without notifying stakeholders, took only 10 days to review and approve Kunyu's plan to process 8,223.7 metric tons of waste within 90 days from the date of issuance. If the trial operation passes environmental monitoring tests, it will obtain an operating license.
When the news broke, public sentiment was in an uproar. Longsheng Village residents and former Magistrate Liu Cheng-hung held a press conference to protest Kunyu's actions. Unexpectedly, Kunyu refused to communicate and filed lawsuits against five people who participated in the press conference for "encroachment and coercion," seemingly using litigation as a tool of intimidation.
Liu Cheng-hung, who has faded from politics, continues to stand with Longsheng Village. "The situation is exactly the same, yet the application was approved in ten days, making it impossible for villagers to live in peace." Liu Cheng-hung said, "I'll say it bluntly: Magistrate Hsu's decision is something that will harm our children and grandchildren."
Landfill less than one kilometer from fertile farmland irrigation pond, risking water source and farmland pollution
At the 106.5-kilometer mark of Provincial Highway 1, directly opposite Datan Scenic Area, two simple tents and two 20-foot shipping containers make up the base of the "Anti-Kunyu Industrial Waste Landfill Self-Rescue Association," which is also the entrance to the Kunyu landfill. Over a hundred members of the self-rescue association cook and eat here. Yesterday (the 21st) was the 16th day.
Three shifts a day, 24-hour watch, all for their own homeland.
Last night, the three women on the middle shift (16:00 to 24:00) all rushed to the site right after getting off work. They cooked a pot of instant noodles on a simple portable stove to fill everyone's stomachs. Although the temperature warmed up during the day, the cold was still biting after nightfall. It's hard to imagine how they endured the winter nights when temperatures dropped to single digits not long ago.
Under the tent, three elders whose ages add up to over 200 sit around a fire pit to warm themselves. A few sweet potatoes on the stove are precisely Longsheng Village's specialty. This organic village, which produces sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and bottle gourds, relies on Datan to irrigate its fertile fields. Datan is the irrigation reserve pond for Mingde Reservoir. The nearby 500 jia of fertile farmland, including Wanbao's special agricultural zone, all depend on Datan for irrigation. The problem is that Kunyu's landfill is not only situated at the highest point of Longsheng Village, which will affect groundwater quality, but is also less than one kilometer from Datan. No wonder residents brave the cold to unite in protecting their homeland.
The landfill has plagued Longsheng Village for over a decade; this year there's no way to enjoy a good New Year
Self-rescue association volunteer Chen Po-hsien is a returning young man who helps with his family's farming while working at the Miaoli County Fu-Li Community Incubation Center. He said that when the Kunyu case was protested over a decade ago, his father stood on the front line of the protest. Little did he expect that after all these years, he would have to pick up the baton and keep going.
"When the trial operation was approved, we weren't given a copy of the official document, and no one informed us. If it weren't for a county councilor friendly to us who told us, we'd still be kept in the dark." Chen Po-hsien questioned that they were clearly key stakeholders, yet received no respect whatsoever. "This case has plagued our village for nearly 20 years. This year, we can't even enjoy a good New Year. The pace of life for our entire village has been disrupted."
Kunyu sues on one hand and tries to buy people off on the other? Yet completely refuses to communicate
Five people who participated in the January 5 press conference were sued by Kunyu for encroachment and coercion. When Kunyu attempted to bring machinery into the site on January 12, several villagers who blocked it were also sued. Township representative Ku Yu-chih went to the police station yesterday afternoon to give a statement, then immediately returned to the self-rescue association base. He said Kunyu's goal is to make villagers retreat in the face of difficulties. "As long as we keep protesting, they'll keep dragging us through the courts endlessly." After Ku Yu-chih spoke, another self-rescue association member added, "I heard Kunyu has seven lawyers, so they can afford to play this game."
Carrot and stick together: Self-rescue association chairman Chen Ching-hsin pointed out that there are rumors Kunyu will offer compensation payments to residents. "We will absolutely not accept this kind of tactic to buy off villagers." From purchasing the land in the 90th year of the Republic of China (2001) to now, 20 years later, Kunyu has not communicated with the public even once. Chen Ching-hsin questioned: if everything is legal, why use these tactics?
Reporter's on-site observation: Landfill equipment is rudimentary; land category change procedure is suspicious
The county government's approval document for the trial operation states that the types of waste include waste plastic, construction waste, sludge, slag and furnace stone, and scrap metal. Even though Kunyu declares all of it to be non-toxic waste, Longsheng villagers question: if it's just general waste, why not bury it on-site? Is it really necessary to transport it all the way from Pingtung and Kaohsiung to Miaoli?
Longsheng Village chief Chen Wu Man-yu informed that the road from the entrance to the burial area is actually private land. But if it were counted as part of Kunyu's site, the development area would exceed 2 hectares, requiring an environmental impact assessment. For this reason, Kunyu can only insist that it is an "existing road," which is why they cannot stop villagers from entering. In fact, at the entrance they even posted a sign explicitly stating: "Villagers are welcome to supervise."
However, when a reporter from NewsMarket wanted to enter, Kunyu cited "valuable equipment inside" as the reason, requiring Manager Shen to accompany them. After walking just over two hundred meters, they came upon a massive pit blocked by an iron chain with a sign reading "No Trespassing." Crossing the chain, the pit appeared to be about the size of four or five basketball courts and two to three stories deep, with only a waterproof tarp laid around it and no sewage treatment pipes whatsoever. Yet all around was natural forest. Self-rescue association secretary-general Chen Chi-chung said the original land category here was agricultural and grazing forest land, but it has already been changed to specifically designated enterprise land.
Facing this extremely rudimentary landfill, the reporter asked Manager Shen whether any treatment would be done after waste is dumped in the future, and when the land category would be changed. But he only said: "No comment to the public."
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