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Taipei recognized for water-saving efforts

Wu Yang-lung, director of Taipei Water Department and Chen Wei-jen, deputy mayor of Taipei City Government, show off the IWA Project Innovation Award trophy July 3 in Singapore. (CNA)

• Publication Date：07/04/2012
• Source： Taiwan Today
• By  Kwangyin Liu

A Taipei City household water conservation program will represent East Asia in a global competition on water management, according to the Taipei City Government July 3.

The Taipei Water Department initiative has won out in the Marketing and Communication category in the latest edition of the International Water Association’s Project Innovation Awards, ousting fellow competitors in the East Asia region including Busan, Seoul and Tokyo, according to the TWD.

Since 2007, Taipei has reduced household water consumption 15 percent, from 263 liters to 224 liters per day, TWD Director Wu Yang-lung said.

“Given that Taipei has a relatively low water price compared to neighboring cities in the East Asia region, this is quite a remarkable achievement,” he added. Taipei’s price of NT$8.21 (US$0.28) per metric ton is one-fifth that of Tokyo and half that of Singapore, sources said.

As household consumption accounts for over 70 percent of the city’s water use, the municipal government has introduced a variety of campaigns targeting families, including regular checkups for leakage, community competitions and educational programs at local schools.

Taipei Deputy Mayor Chen Wei-jen, who together with Wu accepted the East Asia award in Singapore, said the city gets a lot of rainfall, but storage is a problem. “Under the extreme weather conditions we now face, if citizens don’t conserve water, shortages could occur at any time.”

The city’s program will be competing with other winning regional projects from Asia Pacific, Europe and West Asia, and North America for the Global Awards at the 2012 IWA World Water Congress in Busan, South Korea, in September. (THN)