Chiayi City Environmental Bureau Seeks Funds for 30 New Sanitation Workers Amid Efficiency Concerns

The Chiayi City Environmental Protection Bureau is seeking to expand its sanitation workforce by 30 employees, requesting an additional budget of NT$7.1 million for the latter half of the year. The proposal is currently under review by the Chiayi City Council.

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Citizens often hit dead ends when inquiring about city appearance maintenance or street tree trimming because they don't understand the division of responsibilities between the Environmental Protection Bureau and other departments, leading to perceptions that departments are passing the buck.

Several city councilors raised concerns about the efficiency of municipal departments, citing public confusion over the division of responsibilities. They noted instances where citizens seeking services like tree trimming encountered difficulties due to unclear jurisdictional boundaries between departments, leading to delays and perceived inefficiency. Councilors urged the city government to better integrate its bureaus to enhance operational effectiveness and ensure a more responsive public service.

Councilors specifically mentioned issues like the coordination between the sanitation team's grass-cutting and street-sweeping operations, where delays could negate the initial work. They also highlighted the complexity of determining responsibility for maintaining trees in parks, suggesting that a single citizen inquiry should lead to a swift resolution regardless of departmental lines.

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The vertical and horizontal communication between departments and the Environmental Protection Bureau's sanitation team is not integrated. For example, the sanitation team's grass-cutting squad finishes cutting the grass, but the street-sweeping squad only comes the next day, and the grass has already blown away. Integration is needed to improve efficiency.

Sun Yi-dun, Director of the Environmental Protection Bureau, responded that the 30 new positions would bolster garbage collection and provide reserve personnel. He explained that the existing 397-member team faces increased demand on 15 urban routes due to dense populations and high recycling volumes. The bureau plans to increase garbage collection routes and street sweeping capacity, necessitating additional staff. For issues like street tree pruning, Sun clarified that responsibilities are divided based on land ownership and inter-departmental agreements, advising citizens to use the 1999 hotline for assistance, where trained staff will direct inquiries to the appropriate unit.

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Citizens who don't understand can call the 1999 convenient service hotline, and a specialist will understand the problem and assign it to the responsible unit for handling.