Sustainable Operation and Management of Water Resources in Taiwan : Visions and Strategies of Water Supply Development
Shin-Shen Ho
Project Research Scientist, Agricultural Engineering Research Center (AERC), Taiwan
ABSTRACT An excel1ent water infrastructure is very important for the development of a society. The sound water supply services not only promote the wellbeing ofthe people but also have a good bearing on the issues of land planning, development and utilization of water resources, ~0i1 co?servatio~ an~ environmental protection. With rapid socioeconomic development and mcreasmg urbamzatIon, an efficient and clean public water supply system has become a vital part ofpublic works in Taiwan. With water supply reaching a high expansion stage, our water supply enterprise has entered into an era of advanced maintenance and management, and competent water quality and service. The rising population, growing economy, and boosting of national competency impose tremendous demand for ample and steady water supply that makes the development of water resources an ever-pressing undertaking. The new water quality standards are being implemented by different phases. The employment of cutting-edge water treatment systems will be a trend. In terms of internal management and functionality, our water supply services have the strength of a sound organizational structure and management control system, professional workforce, enhanced productivity, a stable market, and the abiHty to make cross-regional supply adjustment. But we have faced with the challenges of organizational inflexibility, aging workforce, lack of modern service concepts, inadequate water sources, antiquated equipment, rising costs and deteriorating financial integrity. In the face of many variables in the internal and external environments, water supply services should enhance the customer service by impregnating their employees with new service concepts, and draw up plans, measures and programs to meet the chal1enges and demands ahead, and present a new look ofhigh-efficiency in the new age. keywords : Sustainable Development, Water Resources, Water Supply
1. INTRODUCTION Water is an indispensable element of daily life,. It is also. an important part ~f natio~al economic planning and development. With rapid SOCioeconomIC development and. mtreastn~ urbanization an efficient and high quality public water syste~ has be~ome a vita part 0 public The water quality and supply capability have a on work~. dIre~t ~eanng f t~~eh~a;i~C~;~ ellbeing of the people. Thus the prevalence of water supp Y IS one 0 f . :enchmarks gauging the infrastructure, standard of living, and degree 0 economIC development. d I B 1945 ri ht before Taiwan was recovered from the han~s of Ja~an, a cru e SU?P y systen?'had ju~t t;ken shape with water supply facilities installed m all major t,ownsthantd citiels· , t as keen on the constructIons a wou d Subsequent to the restoratIOn, our governmen w "}' , , I ' I' l'h od particularly the development ofwater resources. FIrstly, faci ltles Improve peop e s Ive 1 0 , d b equently damaged during the war were restored. Expansion projects went un erway su s .
705 Taipei became the capital of the government of the Republic of China in 1949 when the oce Chinese Communist Party took over the mainland. The government started to pursue the task oce ofnational build up, and the water supply enterprise in Taipei was the first to be taken over by the Bureau of Enterprise Management of Taipei City Government. However, the system mOl supplied only for the administrative regions of Taipei City in that time. In January, 1961, on 1 Taipei Water Works was renamed after Taipei Water City Works and became the first regional eas1 water supply enterprise in northern Taiwan. At the end of 1976, Taipei City Government frae decided to establish a central agency in charge of the water supply enterprise. Therefore, a Dul reshuffle was made. The Taipei Water and Sewage Construction Committee was then ton dissolved; Taipei Area Water Engineering Corporation and Taipei Water Works were merged run into Taipei Water Department. The new department takes over the management ofthe original lane Taipei Water Works, and supplies water to the Great Taipei Metropolitan Area, including few inci cities and boroughs in Taipei County, such as Sanchung, Chungho, Yungho, Hsintien and feat Shihchi. It is the largest public water supply system in northern Taiwan. on1 Prior to 1974, the water operation and management system in Taiwan was under the jurisdiction of local governments on the levels of city, county, and town, while the provincial 2.3 one was managed' by the provincial water establishment. As a result, water supply developments tended to be overlapped, leading to redundancy and inefficiency. Thus the the provincial government began to centralize the water supply enterprise in 1974. With the terr convergence of manpower and funds, the provincial government was able to speed up the ob, development of water works and set out the long-range and mid-range development plans. In No the meantime, the Taipei City Government launched phase 3 and phase 4 expansion plans to bre meet the pressing demands for water supply. In offshore islands, Kinmen had a water works set up in 1966 to take charge of the construction and operation of water supply facilities in that area. Groundwater purification plant, underground water supply station, and piping of the water supply system were also undertaken subsequently. With scarce water resources, Kinmen suffers from water shortage 2.~ almost every year. Thus the development of water sources is an urgent task for that region. The water supply development in Matsu island began in 1973. The local government completed the construction of few small-scale reservoirs under the subsidy of central bi: government to supply water to the local residents and military establishments there. However, TI the supply has been very limited. su 1( n: 2. PHYSICAL FEATURES OF TAIWAN T 2.1 Geography Taiwan (Republic of China) is an island located at 119°18'03/1E 124°34'30/lE, and 21°45'25"N to 25°56'30"N, with the Pacific Ocean on its east side, and the Taiwan Strait on the west to separate Taiwan from Mainland China.
l 2.2 Topography ( The Central Mountain extends from north to south as a backbone range of the island. Its 1 peak elevation reaches over 3,000 m. The Central Mountain is separated from the eastern Coastal Range by a long and narrow valley. However, the western Taiwan is an open plain. The land resources, as shown in Fig. 1, are rather limited in Taiwan. The total area ofTaiwan is 36,000 km2 (377km long and 142 km wide). Steep mountainous terrains with elevations above 1,000 m occupies about 32% ; hilly and terrace lands between 100 and 1,000 m
706 the occupies 3 1% ; and alluvial plains below 100 m 18k occupies the remaining 37% ofthe island area. by The. island of Taiwan is dominated by a folded em mo~ntam range composed of sedimentary rocks H, on Its western slope and metamorphic rocks on its 1al eastern slope. The rock strata are sheared mt fractured, rather weak, and severely weathered: ,a During rainy seasons, the great intensities of en torrential rains combined with high velocity ed runoffs render heavy erosion over this precipitous lal ~and surface. Furthermore, frequent earthquakes tw Increase the instability of slopes. These land ltd features as mentioned above have great influences on the socio-economic development ofTaiwan.
2.3 Climate Taiwan is ofsubt;opical island climate. Due to the influence of Mainland air currents, warm temperature, heavy rainfall and strong wind Fig.l Taiwan's land resources distribution obVIously occur in various seasons and areas. Northeast m~nsoo?s prev~iJ from October to March. Typhoons and thunderstorms have brought plentiful ramfall whIch used to cause floods and disasters. The average annual rainfall and evaporation are approximately 2,515 mm and 197 billion 3 m , respectively. The evaporation in Taiwan thrives due to the long duration of strong sunlight.
2.4 Hydrology
The average annual runoff in Taiwan is approximately 68.8 billion m}, but it is only 15.4 billion m} (23%of the annual average) during drought seasons \from November to April). The average water use in Taiwan is approximately 18 billion m for the last decade, from 3 surface and groundwater that are 12 and 6 billion m , respectively. Groundwater resources are abundant in plain regions. Total plain area is approximately 2 10,330 km , which is about 29% of Taiwan area. Regular annual groundwater discharge and 3 recharge volume during average years are approximately 5.8 and 5.05 billion m , respectively. The over-withdrawal for aquaculture has resulted in severe land subsidence. Appropriate control and management of groundwater utilization have been put into practice by concerned authorities.
2.5 Rivers There are 129 named rivers in Taiwan. Most ofthem are short and steep in their mid- and up-stream reaches and heavily loaded with silts. Their flows become torrential and muddy during storm periods. There are only 7 streams longer than 90 km, yet 95 are shorter than 30 km. 92% among 60 larger streams have channel gradient steeper than 11100. Streamflows are much lower in winter and spring seasons than in summer periods. Shortage of water usually occurs each year during February to May, especially in the southern plain of the island. However, floods often occur in the meanders at lower reaches.
707 2.6 Population
Population is one of the essential elements of a nation. The demographic characteristics are closely related to the strength and socioeconomic prosperity of that country. The population of Taiwan was 22,276,672 at the end of 2000, and the estimated population in 2036 will be around 25,200,000. The population increase from 1990 to 2036 is estimated to be 4,806,597, which is 20% of the population in 1990. The average consumption of domestic water use in 1984 was 268 liters per capita per day, while the availability of water supply in the same period of time was only 76.4% of the figure. In the target year of 2036, the unit water demand is predicted to be 500 liters per capita per day, while the availability of water supply is estimated to be 100%.
3. DEVELOPMENTS AND UTILIZATION OF WATER RESOURCES Rainfall in Taiwan distributes unevenly in time and space. There are droughts and floods from time to time. Farm irrigation is necessary for agriculture. Water conservancy management in Taiwan started from 1944. Public and industrial water demands have increased constantly since then. Rapid growths in agriculture and livestock industry also speed up the water use. The agricultural water use here includes irrigation, agriculture, and livestock breeding. Though the average annual rainfall is not short in Taiwan, people still experience water deficiency occasionally. For example, the average annual rainfall was 89.15 billion tons in Taiwan from 1989 to 2000. The average total annual water use was about 18.04 billion tons in the same period, which includes 13.71, 2.68, and 1.66 billion tons for agricultural, domestic, and industrial use, respectively. The water sources are mostly derived from stream flows (7.50 billion tons), and partially from groundwater (6.28 billion tons), and reservoirs (4.26 billion tons). Figure 2 shows the average water use allocation in Taiwan from 1989 to 2000.
( 1) Streams :
Water is derived from intakes, led to the irrigation channels by gravity flow, and then delivered to rice paddies. The key irrigation facilities were installed at 1,609 locations. The total length is approximately 68,094 km. Records in 1998 showed that 9.1 billion tons of streamflow (about 85.74% of that derived from intakes) was for farm use.
(2) Reservoirs and Water Ponds:
There are 41 main reservoirs in Taiwan, in which 10 of them are exclusively for farm irrigation. Nine out of 41 are for other uses besides irrigation, e.g., livelihood, power generation, and industrial use. The total storage and effective capacities are 2.65 and 2.08 billion tons, respectively. There are 16 reservoirs being under design and planning. They contribute 1.9 and 2.64 billion tons effective capacity and annual water supply, respectively. The reservoirs are usually constructed for farm irrigation, while the water ponds are for water allocation sometimes. Water ponds are mostly distributed in Tao-Yuan (226 ponds) and Shih-Men (460 ponds) regions. The effective storage capacity of Tao-Yuan water ponds is 33.7 million tons in total and the annual irrigation allocation is approximately 35%. In Shih-Men Irrigation Region, the effective capacity is 11.5 million tons in total and the annual irrigation allocation is approximately 25%.
708 Rainfall Unit : Billion tons 89.15 100% Evaooration 14.30~ ,.... 21.66
~, +71.21% j. 4.49% Direct Runoff ~.~.=.=.==.=.=.=.==.=.==.=~ Groundwater Recharge 63.49 4.00 Runoff to the Sea ...... 51.73 Groundwater S urcharge ,..... ? ?R + .. ~r Reservoir Supply River Intake Groundwater Intake 4.26 (23.61%) 7.50 (41.58%) 6.28 (34.81 %) I +I I Total Water Supply 18.04
~4.84% ~r9.18% f5.98%
Domestic use Industrial use Agricultural use 2.68 1.66 13.71
Fig. 2 The average water use allocation in Taiwan from 1989 to 2000
(3) Groundwater:
Groundwater is dependable, convenient to withdraw, cheap, and clean by natural filtering. When surface water is insufficient, groundwater is usually the next choice. The development of groundwater resources is, therefore, as important as reservoir construction. Groundwater is most abundant in southern coastal regions. The estimated volume of groundwater recharge in Taiwan is approximately 4 billion tons annually. Serious groundwater over-pumping usually results in land subsidence and tidal floods. Relevant authorities have encouraged users to increase water recycling, improve water-use efficiency, and reduce groundwater withdrawal. There are 376, 30, and 177 wells being installed in Taiwan for the monitoring of water level, land subsidence, and groundwater quality, respectively. The groundwater withdrawal for aquaculture consequently has been reduced from 2.40 to 1.29 bi11ion tons in the period from 1991 to 1999. 709 With complicated hydrological and topographic conditions in Taiwan, there is a large enterpris€ difference of water availability between wet and dry seasons. Rapid economic growth has increased the water use for agriculture and livestock industry. The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) has estimated that the total water demand will increase up to 21.3 billion 4.3 Opel tons by 2011. However, the streams seldom provide large supply. This has added difficulties onto the supply and management of water resources. The key strategic solutions include the (1) Tai wise management of catchment areas, development of desalinization and groundwater Ct recharge technologies, advance dual water supply systems, reclaim water supply subsystems, and encourage water recycling. a. On the other hand, urban and industrial developments have also accelerated the pace of b. land use. The misuse and overuse of watershed and over-cultivation of slope land have enhanced the surface erosion, disabled the self-restraint of soils, and increased the burden on c. reservoir sedimentation. Therefore, the advancement of soil and water conservation sciences for watersheds and the reclamation of reservoirs and utilization of sediments are the key d. solutions to mitigate the impact of situation on ecology and environment at present. The development of regional precipitation analysis models, the estimation of surface run-offs and reservoir storage capacity, the determination of soil moisture characteristics, and the c establishment of GPS and remote sensing technologies are all in progress to provide real-time water resources conservation information for decision makers. To improve the water quality a and to provide a water-friendly environment, water quality improvement technologies are also investigated. Both comprehensive land use planning and effective groundwater management b in the land subsidence regions are essential for the sustainable development of water and land resources. (
4. Operational Highlights
4.1 Tap Water Law and relevant regulations
Modem Tap Water Law and relevant regulations were established in Taiwan in early 1966. A total of 17 were promulgated for various functions related to water management, in which 7 were established by the central government, 9 were made by the provincial (city) government, and 1 was made by the provincial (city) or county government. (2
4.2 Management agencies of water supply
Based on the national laws, the central management agency of water supply is the Ministry of Interior, and the management and development of water resources is ascribed to the Ministry of Economic Affairs. However, in order to meet the government adjusted supply target in 1999, the Ministry of Economic Affairs was entrusted to take over the management ofwater supply, with the administration including the Kinmen and Matsu Water Plants. There are different operational styles for water supply affairs. Though Tap Water Law has permitted the privatization of water supply enterprise in Taiwan, the water supply undertaking is still a public utility enterprise. Taiwan Water Supply Corporation serves the area covering Taiwan province and Kaohsiung City, and Taipei Water Department serves the Great Taipei Metropolitan area. The difference between the two organizations is that the former is managed as a corporation (established in 1974), and the latter is a governmental
710 enterprise.
4.3 Operational Strategies (1) Taiwan Water Supply Corporation (TWSC) Currently, the operational strategies ofTWSC are:
a. Provide sufficient and good quality tap water to satisfy the customers' demands. b. Maximize the utilization of limited manpower and resources, take responsibility and elevate operational efficiency. c. Enhance customer service, improve service quality, and build a positive corporate Image. d. Standardize operational procedures, elevate efficiency, and pursue scientific methodology to ensure long-term operability. Consequently, the operational directives ofTWSC are:
a. In accordance with the national fiscal and construction plans, explore new water supply sources to meet tap water demands, and promote water conservation. b. Promote water source protection measures, improve water purification facilities to ensure tap water quality. c. Manage cost-effectively to achieve fair return on investments. d. Establish district profit centers to reflect cost distributions. e. Continue to upgrade pipelines, expedite repairs, and replace aged meters to increase accuracy. f Discontinue manual collection, promote computerization and customer friendly programs, improve service quality and enthusiasm, and establish a positive corporate image. . . g. Trim organizational size, enhance manpower resource development and admInIstr ation h. Build financial flexibility and improve financial structure.
(2) Taipei Water Department (TWD) . The current operational strategies ofTWD are lIsted below.
a. Promote clean water use plans. b. Strengthen the safety of water supply and the flexibility of operation. c. Increase performance achievements and reduce operational cost.
The operational slogans set by TWD are illustrated in the following.
a. Sufficient water capacity. b. Good water quality. c. Rational water rate. d. Thoughtful service quality.
711 4.4 Organizations and Staffing 5.1 (1) Taiwan Water Supply Corporation (TWSC) 5.1 The TWSC has established a congress of shareholders and a board of directors. The corporation is structured along the line of centralized management with districts handling enterprise transactions. The Head Office is in charge of overall planning, res evaluation and allocation of resources. Under this office, there are 12 district offices 19~ responsible for production, operation, maintenance, enterprise and customer service. In ter addition, there are 3 engineering departments that are responsible for engineering ad~ projects, and 2 water meter repair plants to handle the inspection and repair of water Ta meters, and a water quality department to handle water quality examination, managing Ta affairs and research on water treatment techniques. A staff-training center is set up to sy: handle pre-employment and on-the-job training. w~ There were 6,180 employees on TWSC's payroll at the end of 1999. The regular se: staff members were 2,089 (33.80%) and the regular technicians were 4,091. In addition, wl a number of ;vater purification plants and reservoir facilities were constructed by at1 TWSC. The facilities comprise 1S8 mixing basins, 290 flocculate basins, 39S H sedimentation basins, 882 rapid basins, 333 slow filter basins and 1,776 water (7 reservOIrs. Sl: (2) Taipei Water Department (TWD)
As a public utility company run by the Taipei Municipal Government, TWD must conform to Article 17 of the Taipei Municipal Government Organization Rules in both organization structure and staffing. A total of 7 divisions and S offices are responsible for various functions related to water production and supply, which includes: Operation and management of raw water intake facilities and water pressure adjustment ; Operation and maintenance of water delivering and supervision ; Enterprise management, planning, research, performance evaluation, and review & formulation of water supply codes; Financial and property management; Materials control and management; General affairs administration; Planning and design of information system and procurement & lease of hardware; Planning and management of labor health and safety; Management of accounting and statistics; Personnel and work ethics. Besides, 5 district enterprise offices are in charge of customer service, taking meter readings, and water charge collection ; water supplying administration, and leakage repair. There are two centers to take charge of water quality management and maintenance, and manpower training. An affiliate, the Engineering Corps, takes charge ofexpansion and improvement of water sources and water supplying facilities. There were 1,288 employees on TWD's payroll at the end of 1999. The regular members of staffs and technicians were 795 and 493, respectively. Moreover, TWD has currently 5 purification plants, 101 water reservoirs, 66 mixing basins, 122 filter basins and 72 sedimentation basins that are scattered throughout the served area ofTWD.
12 5. ENTERPRISE ACHIEVEMENTS 5.1 Goals of water supply
TWSC and TWD are the two primary public utilities of water in Taiwan. They are responsible for supplying water to Taiwan area and Penhu offshore Island. As of December 1999, total number of their customers stood at 19.90 millions or 6.575 million households. In terms of population served (22.03 million) in Taiwan, the average serving penetration ratio added up to 90.3% as a total, which was 88.4% in Taiwan Province and 99.4% in the Great Taipei Metropolitan Area. There are only 2.131 million people without tap water service. Table 1 shows the number of population and households served by public water supply system and the serving penetration ratio from the two public utilities in Taiwan area. The water serving penetration ratio in Taiwan over the years are shown in Figure 4. In fact, the serving penetration ratio of Taipei water supply system already reached 99% in 1984-1985, which can compete with other areas around the world. Moreover, the supply capacity already attained 29.5 billion cubic meters in 1994 and even reached to 34.1 billion cubic meters in 1999, which included 24.4 billion cubic meters from the provincial water supply system (71.6%), and 9.7 billion cubic meters from the Taipei water supply system (29.4%). The supply capacities of Taiwan area in the past few years are shown in Table 2. In Kinmen, the public water supply has served 40 thousand people. The average serving penetration ratio reached 97.8% at present. In Matsu, only N an-Gan and Tong-Yiin Counties have better water supply system, and the average serving penetration ratio is about 80%.
Table 1 The achievement ofwater supply in Taiwan (December, 1999)
Serving Utility Total Population Population households Penetration Company Served area (Thousand) Served (Thousand) (Thousand) ratio (%) Taiwan Provincial 18,208 16,095 5,161 88.4 TWSC and Kaohsiung City
Taipei City, 4 cities in Taipei County, 7 3,805 1,414 99.4 TWD boroughs in Shichih 3,823 Town. 6,575 90.3 Total 22,031 19,900
Source: Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and Taipei Water Department, 2000.
713 1974 1m 1m I~ 1~ 1984 ISIl6 1988 1m 1992 1m l~ 1998 Years
Fig.4 The water serving penetration ratio of Taiwan in 1974--1999
Tabie 2 The supply andd emand of water supplyI In . T'alwan ( 1994-199 9)
Category 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
3 Supply capacity (billion m ) 2.95 2.98 3.03 3.11 3.20 3.41 TWSC 2.07 2.08 2,12 2.24 2,32 2.44 TWD 0,88 0,90 0,91 0.87 0,88 0,97 3 Water sold (billion m ) 2.19 2.25 2.35 2.37 2.39 2.45 TWSC 1.63 1.71 1.78 1.83 1.83 1.88 TWD 0.56 0.54 0.57 0,54 0.56 0,57 The charged service ratio (%) 72.6 74.2 75.9 75.0 73.3 70.8 TWSC 76.5 79.9 81.3 79.6 76.9 75.6 TWD 63.2 60.8 62.8 62.7 63.4 58.2 Per-capita daily consumption 268 264 274 268 264 268 (liters) TWSC 233 231 239 237 230 235 TWD 404 396 417 398 407 408 Per-capitadaily supplied water 373 363 367 363 365 386 (liters) TWSC 304 289 294 298 299 311 TWD 639 652 663 634 642 701
Source: Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and Taipei Water Department, 2000.
5.2 The supply and demand of water supply In Taiwan, due to the rising population, higher livelihood of people and rapid economy development, the demand ofwater supply climbs year by year.
714 As of December, 1999, the total volume sold by TWSC and TWD reached 2.45 billion cubic meters, of which 1.88 billion cubic meters were from TWSC water supply system, and 5.7 billion cubic meters were from TWD. The charged service ratio is determined by the volume of water sold divided by the water supply capacity. The charged service ratios of Taiwan area in the past six years are shown in Table 2. To raise the charged ratio, TWSC and TWD have adopted the following measures: recalculation of water discharge at water intake, comprehensive examination of all flow meters, intensified prohibition and accusation against water theft, establishment of sub-regional pipe network system, and replacement offailed check valves. The per-capita daily consumptions were determined by the volume of the annual water sold divided by the population served. In 1999, the per-capita daily consumption in Taiwan as a whole was 268 liters, ofwhich, 235 liters in Taiwan Province and 408 liters in Taipei City. In 1999, the average supply per day per person in Taiwan as a whole was 386 liters, of which 311 liters were in Taiwan Province and 701 liters were in Taipei City. In Kinman and Matsu offshore islands, Kinmen County Water Plant and Lian-Jiang County Water Plant are responsible for supply~ng tap water at present. Table 3 shows the recent water supply status in Kinmen and Matsu areas.
Table 3 The water supply status in Kinmen and Matsu areas (1990'"" 1999)
Kinmen County Water Plant Lian-Jiang County Water Plant Supply capacity Water sold Percentage of Supply capaci,ty Water sold Percentage of (Thousand m]) (Thousand mi) \\ater sold (%) (Thousand m') (Thousand m-') water sold . 4,766 4,239 889 593 361 609
4,759 4,242 891 402 268 668 472 4,715 4,196 890 583 276 473 691 4,887 4,346 889 685 101 804 4,701 4,159 885 126 440 881 4,360 3,844 882 499 426 358 837 4,831 4,185 866 663 456 687 4,770 4,090 857 918 570 621 4,967 4,244 854 695 578 832 5,017 4,242 845
Source : Kinmen County Water Plant and Lian-Jiang County Water Plant.
M 'n order to radically solve the long-term water shortage on the, offshore islands, oreover, 1 , 1994 to subsidize the constructIon of seawater the government has made budgets stnce nt\)' 9 desalination p\ants either under desalination plants for domestic supply. Ther~ are cudrret' of 13 700 tons. As far as energy construction or on operation, with a total dally pro uC 10n ,
715 conservation is concerned, small scale of under 500 CMD RO system has been used in these plants, except for those in Penghu and Kinmen areas. In the meantime, the government fully supports the costs of both construction and operation of all offshore seawater desalination plants on a government-owned/private-operation basis. Water from these plants has been fed into the local water supply system. The seawater desalination plants under construction and operation in Taiwan area are shown in Table 4.
Table 4 Existing seawater desalination plants in Taiwan
Name and Location Capacity Desalination Purpose Status (CMD) Process Used
Cheng Kung, Penhu 2,500 RO Domestic Supply Operating Penhu Island 2 7,000 RO Domestic Supply Comrnissionin.E Hoojing Island 200 RO Domestic Supply Commissioning Tonpang Island 100 RO Domestic Supply Commissioning Wang-An Island 400 RO Domestic Supply Under Construction Nangan Island 1, Matsu 500 RO Domestic Supply Operating Nangan Island 2, Matsu 500 RO Domestic Supply Commissioning Hsiju, Matsu 500 RO Domestic Supply Commissioning Kinmen Island 1, Kinmen 2,000 RO Domestic Supply Under Construction Total 13,700
Source: Water Resources Bureau, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Republic of China, 2001.
5.3 Installation of water supply pipes Installation of pipes is one of the important waterworks. The total length of service pipes from the TWSC and TWD adds up to about 54,329 km, which is 12,892 km longer than that in 1994. The increment rate is 31.1%(as Table 5). In terms of the materials, plastic pipe is the most popular and is applied in small caliber because of its low cost and lightweight for easy delivery. The second popular pipe is the traditional ductile cast iron pipe, which has high endurance. On the other hand, white iron pipe, fiberglass-reinforced plastic pipe, ABS pipe, and high-density pipe and polyethylene pipe are almost used as small caliber of pipe. To reduce leakage, replacing aged pipes and applying state-of-the-art technology to the detect leakage are adopted usually.
7]6 these Table 5 The installed length ofwater supply pipes in Taiwan (1994--1999) fully Unit' Km ation Year TWSC TWD Total n fed 1994 37,745 3,692 41,437 1 and 1995 40,870 3,349 44,219 1996 43,146 3,412 46,558 1997 45,500 3,481 48,981 1998 48,665 3,542 52,207 1999 50,734 3,595 54,329 Source: Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and Taipei Water Department, 2000.
5.4 Water rates No matter if Taiwan province or Great Taipei Metropolitan area, both Water Supply Corporation and Taipei Water Department have adopted a united water rate for fresh water at present. The price is collected by the per difference of tube ofserviced household, but not the region of population or the kind of serviced household. The water charge consists of two parts: the basic charge and accumulative rate. The basic charge ofeach month is collected at a fixed rate in accordance with the calibrator of reading meter (shown in Table 6). The accumulative rate is based on the amount of water used, which is the same for domestic use and industrial use is applied in multi-sections. At present, the accumulative rate is divided into four sections by TWSC, and fIve sections by TWD. Table 7 shows the water charge per difference oftube adopted by TWSC and TWD.
Table 6 The basic charge per difference oftube in Taiwan Units : NT $ Imonth on Tube size 13 20 25 40 50 75 100 150 200 250 >300 (mm) 18,880 33,344 52,320 TWSC 32 64 118 352 640 1,728 3,424 9,504 ina, 20,060 35,428 55,590 TWD 17 68 126 374 680 1,836 3,638 10,098
Source: Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and Taipei Water Department, 2000.
les I erence 0 ftub e 'nI Taiwan Table 7 The accumulative water charge per hat TWD the TWSC Water rate ISY Water rate Supply capacity 3 Supply capacity 3 (NT $/ m ) gh (m ) (m3) (NT $/m3) )e, 1-20 5.00 To 1-10 7.00 21-60 5.20 ~ct 11-30 9.00 61-200 5.70 31-50 11.00 201-1000 6.50 >51 11.50 > 1001 7.60
Source: Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and TaIpeI Water Department, 2000.
117 5.5 Water supply revenue
The revenue of water supply appears growing steadily in Taiwan. It reached 27.8 billion NT $ in 1999, which showed a 5.17 billion NT $ increase compared to that in 1994. The Q increment rate is 22.8%. In the meantime, the operational cost also rapidly increased th accordingly. The unit cost of water sold by Taiwan Water Supply Corporation began to T: surpass the average unit sale price in 1994 (see Table 8). This has caused the rate of return w owners equity badly. On the contrary, the rate of return owners equity of Taipei Water K Department was higher than the TWSC's. The former has made a profit from the water sold. Q The rate of return owners equity of water supply enterprise (1994,.....1999) in Taiwan is V shown in Table 8. The rates of return owners equity of Taiwan Water Supply Corporation and L Taipei water Department in 1999 were 0.60 and 1.71 %, respectively, which are quite different from the rate oflegal return (5-9%) for Taiwan Water Supply Corporation, and 8% for Taipei Water Department. In the past time, the water supply enterprise dedicated to improve management and promote streamlined actively personnel strategies. Therefore, the supply capacity and the amount of water sold 718 5.6 The water quality management There are three versions of Tap Water Quality Standards in Taiwan. The Tap Water Quality Standard of Taiwan Province was promulgated in 1972, which had been amended three times separately in 1976, 1985, and 1990. The 1990 version is the current standard for Taiwan except Taipei and Kaoshiung Cities. The Tap Water Quality Standard of Taipei City was promulgated in 1975, and amended in 1990, while the Tap Water Quality Standard of Kaoshiung City was promulgated in 1981 and has been valid since then. The Tap Water Quality Standards mentioned above were promulgated based on the requirement of the Tap Water Law. At present, the amendment draft of the Tap Water Law is under deliberation by the Legislative Yuan. Besides, the Tap Water Quality Standards (Drinking Water Quality Standards) were set up based on the requirement of the Drinking Water Management Act. The original Drinking Water Management Act of Taiwan was promulgated in 1972. For the time being, the Taipei City, Kaoshiung City, and Fukien Province have established their own Drinking Water Management Acts. Obviously, the Drinking Water Quality Standards are similar to the Tap Water Quality Standar.ds. The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) amended and promulgated the Drinking Water Management Act on May 21, 1997. According to Article six of this Act, surface water and groundwater whose quality is compatible with Drinking Water Quality Standards are suitable for drinking. The Water Quality Standards of Drinking Water Sources were promulgated by the EPA in 1997 and became effective on May 21, 1998. Besides, the Drinking Water Quality Standards were promulgated and made effective on February 4, 1998. The purpose of the Water Quality Standards of Drinking Water Sources promulgated by the EPA is to force the water industry to follow more stringent regulations, and to improve their water treatment equipments and methods, for the pretreatment of raw water before it enters into the main treatment system. Due to heavy pollution in water catchment as well as the growing awareness of environmental protection, water supply enterprise in Taiwan has to launch several improvement plans to ensure the water quality to the official standards. All the examination departments of water supply enterprise in Taiwan have to be inspected by The Environmental Protection Administration and they issued the licenses to guarantee the reliability of the analyses. 6. PROBLEMS FACING THE DEVELOPMENT OF WATER SUPPLY ENTERPRISE 6.1 Main issues of water supply development The Construction & Planning Administration under the Ministry of Interior has pointed out seven issues concerning water supply development in its Construction Policy White Paper that was published in 1996. They are: (1) Some water-related regulations are outdated that they have hindered the sound development of water supply enterprise. (2) Water rates fail to reflect reasonable costs that have adversely affected the water operations. (3) Water sales ratio is relatively low which has affected the effective utilization of water resources. (4) Source pollution in some areas has discouraged users' desire of consumption. 719 (5) Rigid water operational system makes enterprise operation less efficient. (6) The absence of an integrated water supply development system and a dedicated R&D unit has made the improvement ofwater quality difficult. (7) The ineffectual management of sources, quality and quantity of water at the reservoirs cannot assure clean water sources. 6.2 Challenges facing the water supply enterprise In response to the future economic development and consumer demands, water supply enterprise faces the following challenges : (1) Change ofglobal climate Influenced by EI Nino, global climate experience abnormal patterns which have caused significant calamities in different parts of the world. In Taiwan, rainfalls in headwater areas fluctuate widely. In dry seasons, for example, the reservoirs often have low water levels, which result in supply shortage from time to time. (2) Pollution ofwater source Although the central government has designated water protection areas at the watershed, they are still subjected to the disturbance of human activities and exposed to pollution. Water management agencies are assigned the tasks of patrolling the protection areas and notifying the environmental protection agency to take actions upon the discovery of any unlawful activity. For example, Taipei Watershed Administrative Committee is set up in the designated watershed area to monitor any behavior that might adversely affect the water quality or the functions of the 7. watershed. 7, (3) Increasing difficulty in construction Water facilities planned in the early stages were mostly finished. New projects v that are under construction nowadays are both costly and extremely difficult. Other 1 facilities, such as water treatment and transportation facilities are often behind schedule due to the lack of good coordination among contractors of mechanical/electrical, civil, and instrument control works. Also the installation of underground piping requires intensive coordination among different agencies in order to bring the impact on traffic to the minimum. (4) Limited water resources Water is a limited resource. All professional personnel in the water supply enterprise realizes that it is necessary to make good planning for facility development in order to meet the growing demands of industrial and commercial activities. But for the general public, such concept is not well defined. It seems too hard for them to become aware of how precious the water resources are. Thus it is always important to step up the efforts to educate the public about water conservation. (5) Management efficiency Efforts should be focused on reducing water loss during its production, enhancing distribution efficiency, and advising large consumers about water 720 recycling. The water supply enterprise should utilize computers in water allocation .&D and sale management to cut down the use of manpower and set up standard operating procedures for emergencies to strengthen contingency preparedness. 'oirs (6) Regulatory amendment To achieve water conservation and reduce residential and industrial consumption, and the re-use of cooling and washing water, part of the efforts should )ply rely on the use of highly-efficient, water-saving equipment and apparatus, Thus Water Law and relevant regulations should be amended accordingly to make such efforts mandatory and successfuL (7) Adjustment ofwater rates t8.ve s tn Under the support of government policies, water supply enterprise has fien consistently invested huge sum of money in the expansion and improvement of projects tq boost the prevalence of water supply and to meet the demands of residential consumption and economic growth. But our water rates have always been I too low to reflect costs. As a result, water supply enterprise has been relying on lhe government investment or subsidies and loans to make both ends meet. To foster a ted financial environment conducive to the normal development of the water supply enterprise, it is absolutely necessary to adjust water rates to a reasonable level to ~: reflect costs. ed hy he 7. FUTURE DEVELOPMENT GOALS AND STRATEGIES 7.1 Development policies The Construction & Planning Administration has identified seven policies concerning water supply development in its Construction Policy White Paper which was published in 1996 : (1) Amend the Water Law, step up watershed management, and reasonably reflect costs in water charges. ~r (2) Explore the feasibility ofprivatization ofwater supply enterprise. (3) Establish a reasonable water pricing system. (4) Put (water source, quality and quantity) protection areas under different levels of controL y (5) Set up a central agency in charge of the (water source, quality and quantity) protection tt areas. ~ (6) Carry out assessment of water treatment plants and upgrade the know-how of water t> treatment. ) (7) Promote a plan that stresses both source development and water conservation. 721 7.2 Basic goals of water supply development (1) 100% prevalence Aside from putting some self-supply areas under central management, the future efforts of water supply enterprise in Taiwan should target at 100% prevalence and reach mountainous areas, offshore islands and remote areas. (2) Steady supply of clean water In the age of high prevalence of water supply, the primary goal of a water supply enterprise is to supply clean water and to ensure a steady supply, i.e., good quality water should be delivered to every household and the water supply should not be interrupted even in the time of drought or other natural disasters. Thus efforts need to be exerted on watershed protection and maintenance of balanced supply and demand. In addition, water facilities should be reinforced or upgraded to resist and adapt to natural disasters, such as drought or earthquake. (3) Supply oftasty potable water The supply of sweet tasting potable water is a higher realm for the water supply enterprise after a steady supply of clean water has been achieved. Besides setting quality standards for potable water, a paramount task is to secure good quality water right at the sources because treatment alone cannot produce sweet tasting water once it is polluted at the source. Thus action plans should be in place to deal with the eutrophication problem and groundwater pollution. At the same time, water suppliers should work closer to the environmental protection agencies to solve these problems together. 7.3 Development strategies (1) Source development and diverse utilization a. Water suppliers should have a constant grasp of the supply and demand status in each region, and work out an inter-regional support network to reduce the incidence of water shortage or supply cutoff during the time of drought or emergency. b. Water works should have diverse sources, e.g., combining the uses of reservoir and stream water and groundwater, with proper allocation to enhance an effective usage. c. Water suppliers should ask the central government to re-allocate the water rights, in which the rights of public water supply should be properly boosted, so that the allocation of water resources is more rational and effective. d. Desalinization plants are suggested to install for offshore islands to solve the persistent water shortage problem there. (2) Enhancing the functions oftreatment facilities and carrying them up to ISO level a. Water works should be automated, e.g., the operations oftreatment and pressurization 722 facilities, and the monitoring of equipment operation, water quality, quantity and pressure should be automated and timely adjustment should be made whenever is necessary. b. Water works should enhance the training of treatment facility operators in coordination with the upgradation ofequipment. c. Water works should periodically assess the treatment plants, and propose action pJans based on the design parameters, water quality data, operation/maintenance reports and other management data. (3) Upgrading the treatment technology to ensure supply quality a. If the raw water is polluted by the wastewater of livestock or household leading to an increase in the contents of ammonia, nitrogen, E-coli, COD and total organic carbon, a pre-biological treatment facility should be installed before the conventional treatment process is applied to reduce the chlorine level and to enhance sterilization. b. If the raw water is contaminated by industrial waste water, an advanced treatment, including the use of ozone, active carbon (PAC, GAC, BAC) and membranes (MF, OF, NF, and RO) should be employed to remove heavy metals, organic solvents, pesticides and other toxic substances. c. Advanced water treatment technology, such as the use of NF membrane, should be employed to bring the levels of arsenic, IDS and total hardness down to standards. (4) Strengthening management, streamlining organization and enhancing productivity a. Water supply enterprise should consummate the planning and control systems by using scientific methods to forecast future demand, and scheme for the development of sources, equipment investment, operational improvement, human resources, and fund raising in phases. With the setup of a profit center system, water supply enterprise should also implement performance evaluation to optimize the functions of enterprise management. b. Water supply enterprise should undergo organizational restructuring towards a flat, efficient and well-delineated organization, and should enhance the employee quality and productivity. c. Water supply enterprise should promote information management, undergo total computerization, and establish a high-end management and decision support system. d. Water supply enterprise should seek and expand outsourcing for installation works, pipe repair, removal of meters, and meter recording as a way to reduce personal cost. (5) Establishing an electronic service system a. User inquiry: Providing the service of on-line query of user information, such as actual consumption, shared consumption, basic rates, cleaning fees, and added-value tax. b. Water bill and water-related applications: Providing the service of on-line delivery of water bill, on-line application, and electronic payment of water bill. c. Delivering messages of pipe leak, water quality examination report, progress of 723 construction work, and deployment ofunderground pipes on line. (6) Strengthening financial structuring to reach the goal of self-sufficiency Mic a. Water supply enterprise should strive to establish a reasonable pricing mechanism so that the rate structure and pricing formulas may reasonably reflect costs and attain the purpose of water conservation. b. Water supply enterprise should plan the diversification of enterprise, using the available resources to develop, for example, tourism, bottled water or beverage enterprisees. c. Water supply enterprise should set reasonable cost targets in the efforts to reduce Tct. operating costs. 8. CONCLUSIONS Wa Quality and quantity of water consumption in an area can gauge its standard of living and industrial developments. Since Taiwan has attained the rank of advanced countries, at the W~ turn of a new millennium, the water supply enterprise of Taiwan should specifically upgrade herself to a new milestone. As future development trends are concerned, outside people will require a higher level of service from the water supply enterprise. The rising population, ct economic growth, and boosting of national competency impose tremendous demand for ample and steady supply of water, making the development of water sources an ever-pressing undertaking. Based on the principle of self-reliance for development, water supply enterprise in Taiwan implements human management, and also employing latest technologies in establishing a comprehensive information network system to reduce cost outlay due to inefficiency and increase in operational performance. On the other hand, in line with government re-engineering, water supply enterprise in Taiwan actively and wisely improves the utilization of available resources. The main goals are to build up a compact and efficient corporate structure, diversify enterprise lines, explore new means to create auxiliary enterprise revenues, and to develop high-value added by-products. Furthermore, water supply enterprise constantly carries out development projects, strictly implements water quality conservation measures at water sources, and actively develops water purification techniques. It also enhances supply flexibility in response to emergency, upgrades water delivery and distribution piping systems, and strengthens leakage detection and repair program to reduce water loss. The enterprise should demonstrate a high operational performance of water supply in the new millennium. 724 REFERENCES Michael c.H. Lu, 2000, The Operational strategies of water supply sustainable development in the new millennium, Water Resources Management Journal, NO.5. Taipei Water Department, 2000, Statistical Year Book ofTaipei Water Supply Enterprise. Taiwan Water Supply Corporation, 2000, Statistical Year Book of Taiwan Water Supply Enterprise. Tchin-Dee Lee, 1998, Synthesization of water supply enterprise construction achievements and the development research of water supply enterprise in the future for Taiwan area, Research Report ofMinistry ofInterior, R.O.C.. Water Resources Burea~, 2001, The principle plan of water resources development in Taiwan., The Report ofWater Resources Bureau, MOEA, R.O.C .. Water Works Association of the Republic of China (Taiwan), 1990, Water Supply Reviews in Taiwan. Ching-Chuan Chiang, 2000, Discussion of water supply enterprise difficulty problems ahead, Water supply Quarterly, Vol. 19, No.2. 725