To strengthen practical preparedness for chemical hazards, the Department of Environmental Protection of the Taoyuan City Government (TYDEP) held its “2026 Practical Training for Mutual Aid Organizations Handling Toxic and Concerning Chemical Substances” at community centers in Yangmei and Bade districts. The two-day exercise brought together 485 representatives from 511 local mutual-aid member enterprises across Taoyuan, focusing on disaster prevention and initial response along industrial supply chains. The curriculum featured unannounced drills, in-depth root-cause incident analyses, personal protective equipment donning exercises, and tabletop simulations. These efforts expanded frontline readiness to ensure immediate activation of self-rescue, mutual-aid, and cross-district response mechanisms during emergencies, reinforcing the city’s disaster defense network.
Yen Chi-Liang, Director-General of TYDEP, stated that the city has enforced the “Taoyuan Fire Prevention Self-Government Ordinance,” using high-risk site regulation, scientific management, and cross-department collaboration. From January to June 2026, factory and warehouse fires in Taoyuan dropped by 17.9% compared to the same period in 2025. Furthermore, Taoyuan regulates 702 facilities operating with toxic and concerning chemical substances—the highest among Taiwan’s six major municipalities—underscoring the critical need for comprehensive oversight and contingency frameworks. On June 30, the city announced its third batch of designated high-risk sites, incorporating large non-factory warehouses and logistics facilities into the regulatory system. This proactive expansion combines regulatory enforcement with tech-enabled reporting systems to drive corporate self-policing, eliminate safety blind spots, and safeguard public safety and property.
TYDEP emphasized that the safe management of toxic and concerning chemical substances must be strictly implemented across all eight stages of handling: manufacturing, import, export, sale, transport, use, storage, and disposal. Beyond conducting routine inspections of regulated operators, chemical raw material visits, specialized hazardous goods audits, and dynamic material flow tracking, the department deploys tech-driven enforcement for risk-tiered management to preempt potential hazards. Operators handling toxic chemicals are urged to strictly follow statutory tiered thresholds, report operational data accurately, and maintain rigorous data oversight at the source to fortify the environmental safety net.
Moving forward, TYDEP will continue promoting self-inspection mechanisms for high-risk sites, guiding enterprises to integrate routine checks into internal operations. By strengthening cross-departmental coordination among fire, environmental, and building administration departments, Taoyuan aims to establish an integrated response framework spanning pre-disaster early warnings, real-time emergency dispatching, and post-disaster recovery. Through this public-private mutual-aid network, the city seeks to accelerate local response times and build a safe, secure, and liveable city.