TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Democratic Progressive Party caucus in the Taichung City Council on Tuesday urged the city government to address a growing waste crisis, warning that the Dali landfill is nearing capacity.
DPP Councilor Chang Fen-yu (張芬郁) said the landfill has already exceeded its designed capacity by 340,000 metric tons, per Liberty Times. Without intervention, she warned, waste buildup could reach 828,000 metric tons by 2032.
Councilor Wang Li-jen (王立任) said the strain stems from delays in rebuilding the Taichung City Refuse Incineration Plant. He called on Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) to resolve what he described as the city’s “waste disposal nightmare.”
In response, the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau said new incinerator units are scheduled for completion in 2029, which would ease pressure on the Dali landfill, per UDN. The bureau added that the city has reduced the gap between daily waste generation and incinerator capacity, from 234 metric tons in 2023 to 208 metric tons in 2024.
The Dali landfill serves as a buffer for excess waste that incinerators cannot process, per Housemakers United Foundation. Stored waste is removed when capacity becomes available or when neighboring counties lend facilities to assist.
In July, the DPP caucus, joined by the Central Taiwan Association of Universities and several environmental groups, also criticized the city’s pollution controls, per Newtalk. They said that while the Taichung Thermal Power Plant cut emissions by 60%, improvements at the Taichung Refuse Incineration Plant, Houli Recycling Plant, and Wurih Recycling Plant remained below 7%, with Wurih emissions increasing by 3%.
The groups argued that since the power plant accounts for only one-sixth of the city’s total air pollution, the government should shift its focus. They called for greater efforts to reduce emissions from incinerators, address industrial sources, and improve street-level sanitation.
Environmental Protection Bureau Director Chen Hung-yi (陳宏益) countered that comparisons between incinerators and the thermal power plant are misleading, per Newtalk. He said incinerators meet national standards, while the power plant emits significantly higher volumes of pollutants at higher concentrations than similar facilities.
Chen added that the city government has held extensive consultations with residents on the incinerator rebuild. The new units are planned to increase capacity by 50% per unit.
Addressing online misinformation, the bureau said emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides from the Taichung Thermal Power Plant are about 14 times greater than the combined emissions of the city’s three incinerators.
