TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Dapai River in Qingshui District, Taichung, turned red due to paint that was thrown away on Wednesday (March 27).

Taichung City Councilor Yang Tien-chung (楊典忠) told media that after receiving reports of the water turning red, he surveyed the river then notified Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau, reported CNA.

The bureau launched an investigation and took samples from the water, finding that it did not contain any abnormal pH levels or heavy metals, per Liberty Times. Further investigation revealed  the pollutant’s source was red paint thrown in a ditch upstream.

No perpetrators were found at the scene, the bureau reported. Government workers and farmers worked to remove the paint.

Yang said the polluted water will harm the Gaomei Wetland and its ecosystem, an area of about six square kilometers. The councilor suggested that water treatment measures be implemented immediately to avoid irreversible harm to the wetlands.

Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau said that, since the ditch is managed by the Taichung Management Office of the Irrigation Agency, Ministry of Agriculture, all relevant government bodies must work together to clean the river.