Reported by: Yang Shuei-Yong at County Hall
After 23 years of implementation and three difficult years of related engineering work, the Water Diversion from China to Kinmen Project finally came to an end. Yesterday (5th), a cross-strait water-connection ceremony was held at the water receiving pool in Tianpu. Witnessed by about 3,000 countrymen and domestic and foreign media, Magistrate Chen Fu-Hai, Legislator Yang Jhen-Wu and County Councilor Cai Shuei-You jointly turned on the sluice gate and officially announced the beginning of the water connection across the Taiwan Strait. Meanwhile, colored balloons slowly floated up to the sky, marking the successful ending of the whole water-connection ceremony. After the mini-three links, this has once again created cross-strait exchanges and cooperation for the benefit of all, writing a new page in history!
The cross-strait water-connection ceremony was held at 9:00 am yesterday. From early morning on, continuous crowds of people flocked to the event venue; the Jinning Drum Troupe and the Tianjhen Hall Lion Dance Troupe put on exciting and spectacular performances to start the ceremony and warm up the atmosphere. Afterwards, a film about Buying Water from China was played at the ceremony to look back on the whole process, to show the difficulties in promoting the project, so that people would appreciate and cherish the water they drink. On the Mainland China side, the “Fujian Water Supply Project to Kinmen -- Water Connection Live Meeting” event was also held at the same time.
The cross-strait water-connection ceremony was attended by Magistrate Chen Fu-Hai, Secretary-General of the Fujian Provincial Government Wong Ming-Jhih, Deputy Magistrate Wu Cheng-Dian, Chief Secretary Lin De-Gong, Senior Executive Officer Wong Zih-Bao, and County Councillors Tang Li-Huei, Cai Chun-Sheng, Chen Cang-Jiang, Li Ying-Wun, Cai Shuei-You, Ou-Yang Yi-Syong, Legislator Yang Jhen-Wu, mayors from each township, former directors and the current director Syu Jheng-Fang of the Kinmen Water Plant. At 10 am, they turned on the sluice gate together, and made colorful balloons float in the sky, witnessing with fellow countrymen on the scene the historical moment of “two sides of the Taiwan Strait drinking from the same river.”
The Water Diversion from China Project was approved by the Executive Yuan in August 2014. Its main water source is the Shanmei Reservoir in Quanzhou of Fujian Province. With a storage capacity of about 655 million tons, the Shanmei Reservoir is the largest reservoir in Quanzhou. It collects water from the Xixi River at the Jinji Bridge Gate, directing it into Longhu Lake via the water supply system of the Jinjiang River to regulate water usage in Kinmen. The Fujian Water Supply Company in Mainland China set up a pumping station at the Longhu Reservoir and laid out about 11 kilometers of new water pipes to deliver water to the Jinjing Seawall and out to sea, where it is connected with the 16-kilometer undersea pipeline that Kinmen is responsible for to the Tianpu Reservoir.
The total cost of the undersea pipeline construction is NT$1.35 billion, of which the central government subsidized 85% and the Kinmen County Government shouldered 15%. The Kinmen County Waterworks (KCW) signed a water purchase contract with the Fujian Water Supply Co. Ltd., with the water purchase rate set at NT$9.86 per unit of raw water. The KCW stated that the water purchase contract between the two parties will last for 30 years. After 10 years, the scale of water supply can be increased to 34,000 tons per day, and will maintain a maximum flexibility of 55,000 tons per day. This will meet the water need for Kinmen’s medium and long-term development for the next three decades, stabilizing water resources for Kinmen and the development of its livelihood and economy, and most importantly, attaining the goals of conserving Kinmen’s groundwater and diversifying water resources. Magistrate Chen stated that the launching of water diversion from China united the both sides, while drinking from the same water source; blood is thicker than water, while getting drunk together with Kinmen’s famous sorghum liquor. The previous mini-three-links in Kinmen were postal, trading, and transport services; after the successful water connection today, Kinmen has created a new-three-links which is “water, bridge, and electricity links.” The Kinmen County Government will move forward with determination and with no regrets, continuing to strive for the promotion of peace across the Taiwan Strait. He hoped the participating guests would devote their wisdom to create a new stage in Kinmen’s development and another new chapter of cross-strait exchange and cooperation for people’s livelihood!
Magistrate Chen also stressed that due to the efforts of all over the past 20 years, at this historical moment, “cross-strait peace brings Kinmen into the spotlight; and only when Kinmen is under the spotlight can peace be ensured across the Taiwan Strait. The unity of both sides creates the well-being of Kinmen; and only the well-being of Kinmen can ensure the unity of the two sides.” He also mentioned that Kinmen had went through the Battle of Guningtou in 1949; the island suffered pain and hardship; its citizens and countrymen deserve the respect of the Nationalist Party and the Democratic Progress Party in Taiwan, as well as the respect of the Mainland!
He stated that Kinmen always plays a key role especially when the two sides across the Taiwan Strait are locked in a tense atmosphere. In 1990, it was the Kinmen Agreement, and in 2001, the mini-three-links, that brought the two sides closer. In terms of the launching of the cross-strait water connection today, we cannot allow cross-strait uncertainties to affect people's livelihood; priority must be given to the well-being and the interests of Kinmen citizens. He thanked Kinmen’s countrymen for the strength they demonstrated, their willingness to be the friendliest platform for both sides of the strait, and to witness this historical moment together.
Secretary-General of the Fujian Provincial Government Wong Ming-Jhih delivered a speech for the successful completion of Water Diversion from China to Kinmen. He expressed congratulations to Kinmen citizens, and his best wishes on behalf of Fujian Provincial Chairman Jhang Jing-Sen and all the staff at the Kinmen-Matsu Joint Services Center. He pointed out that this is another major event for Kinmen since the launching of the mini-three-links across the Taiwan Strait in 2001.
Wong emphasized that the central government does not object to the water connection but strongly supports it; more than 80% of the project funding is subsidized by the central government. Moreover, the Water Diversion from China to Kinmen project is but one effort by the central government to improve Kinmen’s water supply. The Executive Yuan also formulated the overall water supply improvement policy in the Kinmen area in 2013, including five major strategies and four major goals, hoping to reduce groundwater pumping, reduce water usage, improve water quality in lakes and reservoirs, and improve water supply facilities. He expressed his gratitude to friends who devoted efforts to the water supply, and wished the water connection a smooth success.
Legislator Yang Jhen-Wu stated with emotion that any ideology and politics should not override people's livelihood; the protection of people's livelihoods should always be the highest priority. He further emphasized that as long as it is right and beneficial for the well-being of the people, and as long as it is a matter that brings together people’s consensus, it will definitely gain support by all the people. It is due to the consensus of fellow countrymen driving Kinmen forward behind the scenes that Kinmen can successfully buy water from China and reap these sweet rewards.
Yang pointed out there is still a long way to go for Kinmen. Therefore, in the future, it is still necessary for Kinmen citizens to bolster their common understanding and continue to give their support for building a better Kinmen. As long as it is the right thing to do, different parties will all support the development of Kinmen as a bridge across the Taiwan Strait. He urged people to bolster the consensus, dedicate more thoughts, and move forward together; and he wished the water connection will bring more protection and well-being to people’s lives. During the ceremony, a postman in his green uniform showed up unexpectedly, claiming that he had detoured to check out the vibrant event on his way to deliver postal parcels. He said he was very happy to be a representative of all postmen and had prepared a dance to express his best wishes for the success of the cross-strait water connection.
Mr. Hong, a citizen who attended the ceremony, said that to facilitate cross-strait peace, more rather than fewer exchanges are required; it is a challenge to our wisdom to make it easier to hold exchange activities and reduce the difficulties. He hoped that everyone could support the matter of the cross-strait water connection.
The Water Diversion from China to Kinmen Project can be traced back to 1995, when the Fujian Provincial Water Resources and Hydropower Department (currently the Water Resources Department) in Mainland China formed the “Kinmen-Matsu Water Supply Planning Leading Group” (later converted to the Kinmen-Matsu Water Supply Working Group) to undertake the preliminary work of the project. In response to the need for water resources and the promotion of the mini-three-links, the Water Resources Office (currently the Water Resources Agency) of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) on our side began to assess the policy of getting water from overseas in 2000, and completed the “Impact Assessment and Planning Report on the Kinmen and Matsu Area Buying Water from China.” Later, officials from the two sides met in 2002 to collect information and exchange views on the “Water Diversion from China to Kinmen Project," opening a channel to communicate on the water buying plan. Since then, the two sides have gone through three working meetings and eight technical discussions on the operating details related to the plan. By June 2015, the water authorities on both sides (our Ministry of Economic Affairs and China’s Ministry of Water Resources) and their execution agencies (the Kinmen County Government and the Fujian Provincial Water Resources Department) reached a number of agreements on water sourcing, water quantity, water quality standards, cooperation models, and the water purchase contract period, and completed the signing of the water purchase contract on July 20th of the same year, reaching an important milestone in the water buying plan.