Green apple snails unexpectedly found in Shenmei Pond in Taoyuan; heavy metal pollution is severe; environmental groups demand that officials stop turning a blind eye

Environmental groups including the Tainan Community University, the Taiwan Watch Institute, and the Green Formosa Front Association, together with legislators Lin Shu-fen and Chou Ni-an, held a press conference yesterday (2/9), saying that Shenmei Pond in Taoyuan has been polluted by the nearby Yuhong Technology incinerator. Independent testing by the public found that the highest copper content exceeded the sediment quality index by 938 times, zinc exceeded the standard by 64 times, nickel by 19 times, and cadmium by 24 times. They demanded that the Taoyuan City Environmental Protection Bureau and the Environmental Protection Administration stop turning a blind eye to the polluters, publicly release official pollution investigation data, promptly designate pollution control zones and remediate the environment, and give residents back a clean living space.

Tsai Hung-te, executive secretary of the Soil and Groundwater Pollution Remediation Fund Management Board of the Environmental Protection Administration, responded that the Shenmei Pond pollution case has been referred to the prosecutors and investigators, and that they "will definitely investigate it to the end." As for the official pollution investigation data, he said the relevant data have all been sent to the prosecutors and investigators and will be released after the prosecutor files charges.

Tainan Community University team investigation: multiple heavy metal indices in Shenmei Pond sediment exceed standards