環保署、美國環保署與亞洲環境執法與遵循網絡(AECEN)國際組織，於本(105)年11月8日起，一連3天於臺北共同舉辦「水污染執法策略及實務國際研討會」，共有來自15國政府機關、環保署、地方環保局及專家學者約70位參加盛會。
研討會為環保署今年國際環境夥伴計畫活動，在3天的議程中將分別就「水污染管制策略」、「水污染稽查實務」、「科技工具運用於水污染稽查與實務」、「各國水污染管制及執法」、「亞洲環境執法合作論壇」等議題進行經驗交流與討論，與會人士並將參訪新竹科學園區污水處理廠，瞭解竹科管理中心執行污水處理及污染控制情形。
2014年，我國環保署與創始夥伴美國環保署，在外交部的支持下，正式啟動國際環境合作夥伴計畫(International Environmental Partnership, IEP)。國際環境合作夥伴計畫透過簡單的夥伴概念與多元的合作方式，在區域及世界各地組成專家平臺網絡，致力於共通性環境挑戰議題，如氣候變遷、環境執法、環境教育等，於學校、社區、國家之應對能力的提升，進而能在區域乃至於國際間，累積共同改善環境的成果。
該署署長李應元在研討會開幕致詞時，歡迎泰國、越南、印尼、蒙古、馬爾地夫、新加坡等國來賓與會，並表示我們這幾年來致力於水污染執法工作不遺餘力，已建立完整之執法策略及實務經驗，如同蔡總統在今年就職演說所提到的我們只有一個地球，臺灣不會在各樣的全球環境議題上缺席，臺灣願意和其它國家分享我們在環境保護方面的經驗，貢獻力量去改善地球環境，我們盼望將加強與東南亞國家在環境執法上的合作關係，協助各國在發展經濟時也能妥善保護環境。這項研討會就是為這個目的提供平臺，大家能透過水污染執法經驗交流，建立良好的夥伴關係，一起為保護地球而努力。
該署署長李應元在會中發表「臺灣環境執法策略及成效」演說，他表示近年來環保署推動多項環境執法新策略，如檢警環結盟跨機關聯合查察污染的創舉、整合布建全國空品感測物聯網系統精確掌握空氣污染成因及研擬管制策略、水污染防治法修法及相關配套措施提高污染裁罰額度、推動水質污染總量排放管制計畫、採用創新思維將畜牧糞尿厭氧發酵後作為肥分施灌農地等，最重要的是加強水污染執法工作，並表示運用科技工具來監測環境品質狀況及管制事業污染排放情形，將是未來環境執法的趨勢。
環保署表示該項研討會有助於展現我國在環境保護工作上的成就，並藉此建立與亞洲各國在環境執法上的合作網絡，並以環保外交方式有效提升我國國際能見度。
US and Asian Countries Visit Taiwan to Exchange Enforcement Experiences to Put an End to Water Pollution
The Taiwan EPA will co-host Strategies and Practices for Water Pollution Enforcement Workshop with the USEPA and AECEN in Taipei on November 8-10 with a total of about 70 participants from 15 nations. Officials of the Taiwan EPA, local bureaus of environmental protection, and scholars will attend the workshop as well.
The workshop is one of the activities under the International Environmental Partnership Program (IEP) this year. During the three-day agenda, participants will discuss and exchange experiences in the issues of “Control Strategy of Water Pollution”, “Water Pollution Inspection Practices”, “Technology used in Water Pollution Inspection and Practice”, “Water Pollution Control and Enforcement: Status and Challenges and Success Stories in Asian Countries”, and ”Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network”. Participants will also visit the sewage treatment plant of Hsinchu Science Park to learn about the implementation of sewage treatment and pollution control by the Park Bureau.
The IEP was officially launched in 2014 by the Taiwan EPA and its founding partner, the US EPA, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Through a simple partnership concept and a diverse approach to cooperation, the IEP Program has formed a network of expert platforms in the region and around the world dedicated to address common environmental challenges such as climate change, environmental law enforcement, and environmental education, and to improve the coping capacity of schools, communities and countries, and accumulate the results of environmental improvement at the regional and international levels.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Taiwan EPA Minister Ying-Yuan Lee, said that our efforts in water pollution enforcement in recent years have spared no effort, and we have established a full range of enforcement strategies and practical experience and are willing to share our experience in environmental protection with other countries. We are looking forward to strengthening cooperation with Southeast Asian countries in environmental law enforcement and assisting these countries in protecting the environment while developing their economies. This workshop is to provide a platform for this purpose. We can establish a good partnership to work together for the protection of the Earth through the exchange of experiences in water pollution enforcement.
Minister Lee also gave a keynote speech “The Strategy and Effectiveness of Environmental Enforcement in Taiwan”. He said that in recent years, the Taiwan EPA has been promoting a number of new environmental enforcement strategies, such as the Water Pollution Control Act and related measures remedied to increase the amount of penalties, launching new programs of Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL), and using pigs digested liquid and fiber as farmland fertilizer. The most important thing is to strengthen water pollution enforcement, and that the use of technology tools to monitor the environmental quality and control emissions of industrial pollutants will be the trend of environmental law enforcement in the future.
The EPA said that the workshop would help showcase Taiwan's achievements in the area of environmental protection and establish a network of cooperation with Asian countries in environmental enforcement, and effectively promote Taiwan's international visibility through environmental diplomacy.