Environmental Management Administration

The Central Center of Environmental Management, Environmental Management Administration, Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with the Taichung District Prosecutors Office and the Third Brigade, Central Unit of the Seventh Special Police Corps under the National Police Agency, Ministry of the Interior, as well as the Taichung City Investigation Office, Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau, uncovered a criminal group through long-term monitoring and source tracing. The group conducted transactions under the guise of “recyclable resource products” while in reality engaging in illegal disposal. The Taichung District Prosecutors Office concluded its investigation on March 20, 2026, prosecuting ten individuals including managers of three companies. Charges were filed under the Waste Disposal Act, as well as for criminal environmental pollution offenses, fraud, and violations of the Business Accounting Act. The prosecutors also applied for the court to confiscate NT$380 million in illegal gains.

Lead-containing waste glass was physically ground to be disguised as “products,” making up over 1,000 metric tons of hazardous waste polluting the land.  The Central Center of Environmental Management employed remote monitoring and vehicle route analysis to trace two waste disposal operators in Taichung City and Changhua County. These operators dismantled cathode ray tube monitors, producing funnel glass and panel glass containing high concentrations of the heavy metal lead, classified as hazardous industrial waste. They installed grinding machines in their facilities to grind the material, then packaged and sold it under product codes such as “crushed glass,” “glass blocks,” or “ceramic raw materials.” However, these two companies colluded with a company that lacked qualifications for hazardous waste clearance. Nominally, the colluding company “purchased” these products, but in reality, it was paid to dispose of them, with false invoices issued to conceal the wrongdoing. The company then directly transported over 1,800 metric tons of lead-containing hazardous waste glass to land in Shuntian area, Yuanli Township, Miaoli County, where it was illegally dumped and mixed with other case-related waste. Sampling and testing by the Central Center of Environmental Management showed that the TCLP (toxicity characteristic leaching procedure) test results for lead in the piled waste on-site far exceeded standards, with the highest detected concentration reaching 1,030 mg/L — 206 times above the hazardous industrial waste threshold — resulting in severe soil contamination.

Confiscating hundreds of millions in assets to enforce environmental justice. In addition to being prosecuted under Article 46 of the Waste Disposal Act for illegal waste handling and Article 48 for false reporting, managers of the involved companies were also charged under Article 190-1, Paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code for pollution of the environment arising from business activities, which carries a maximum penalty of up to seven years of imprisonment. The companies illicitly gained up to NT$380 million through falsified product sales documents and fake invoices. During the investigation, the Taichung District Court ruled to seize over NT$330 million in assets from the companies, and prosecutors have also requested confiscation of unlawful gains and machinery used in the crime, including large tractor trucks. In addition to criminal liability, the companies and their managers must remove waste from the contaminated site (with 607 metric tons of hazardous industrial waste already cleared), and environmental protection authorities will continue to monitor restoration progress.

The Environmental Management Administration urges waste disposal operators to uphold professional standards, engage in lawful recycling, treatment, and reuse of waste, and honestly report waste flows. They should not attempt to exploit loopholes through false reporting or sham product sales to cover illegal activities. Environmental protection authorities will continue to leverage technological law enforcement, big data analysis, and cross-agency joint defense systems to dismantle environmental crime networks and safeguard Taiwan’s sustainable environment.