Premier Cho Jung-tai attended a ceremony to mark the completion of Niaozueitan Artificial Lake Jan. 4 in Nantou County, anticipating that the new facility would bolster industrial and tourism development in central Taiwan.
Cho commended the Water Resources Agency under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and related engineering teams for their persistent efforts over the past 10 years to complete the NT$21.95 billion (US$666.83 million) project. The initiative includes a 110-acre water storage area, which is about one-seventh the size of Sun Moon Lake, that can supply 250,000 tons of surface water daily to the region, thus reducing the extraction of groundwater and enhancing water supply resilience, he said.
Equally important, the premier said around 6,600 trees were planted along the lake to encourage low-carbon and green tourism to the area. Cho added that among the proceeds from the sale of excavated soil and stone, NT$185 million went toward meal subsidies at elementary and junior high schools in Nantou, while NT$500 million helped finance garbage disposal and road and bridge construction.
The entire project was overseen by an integrity platform to ensure fair, open and transparent land acquisition, value appraisals and price negotiations, as well as proper and legal sand and gravel management, Cho said. He directed the MOEA to apply the successful approach to similar green projects in the future.
The premier said a downstream water treatment plant currently under construction along with ongoing efforts to consolidate backup water resources in several central Taiwan counties will ensure ample water supply for the growing local smart and precision machinery sector while achieving President Lai Ching-te’s policy goal of balanced development throughout Taiwan. (SFC-E)
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