Taoyuan green oysters contamination: Environmental groups criticize the county government for not even bothering to put up warning signs

The Guanyin algal reef in Taoyuan was designated a wildlife refuge in mid-April, but the Taoyuan Local Alliance, which has long paid attention to the coastal ecology of Taoyuan, believes that simply designating it a protected area is not enough. The green oyster situation persists, and the county government should step up its efforts to investigate and prosecute the illegal discharge of industrial wastewater.

"The Taoyuan coast could be called the most toxic coastline in Taiwan, China," said Pan Zhongzheng, chairman of the Taoyuan Local Alliance. He said that the 27-kilometer algal reef coast along the Taoyuan shoreline has been polluted for years by industrial wastewater discharges, and the fluorescent green oyster situation has persisted. The Taoyuan Local Alliance collected oyster samples at various river mouths in Taoyuan and found green oysters at the mouths of Nankan Creek, Puxin Creek and Laojie Creek, and they were found not only at the outlets near the Dayuan Industrial Zone and Guanyin Industrial Zone, but also in the stone weir area of Xinwu Township at the southern end of Taoyuan, and even green oysters were found within the Yong'an Fishing Harbor area.

Pan Zhongzheng believes this shows that the pollution is not only downstream of the industrial zones; the pollution moves with the currents and affects the entire Taoyuan coast. "With such severe heavy metal pollution, if oysters absorb it, other organisms will be affected too, and it will enter the human body through the food chain."

Green oysters on the wave-dissipating blocks on the south bank of the power plant outfall diversion dike, 130217