Engineering Agency,Taipei Water Department

Overview

Ⅰ. Background

　　Through decades of development, the Taipei water supply system has reached a modern scale capable of meeting demand, supporting redundancy, and ensuring reserve capacity. However, many facilities constructed since 1958 have now been in continuous operation for over 60 years. These aging infrastructures are gradually deteriorating, resulting in declining functionality and renewed challenges to supply stability. A full-scale overhaul would require substantial engineering costs and risk interrupting water operations, which may result in supply-demand imbalances. Moreover, many facilities, though aging, remain serviceable with reduced performance. In light of these challenges, the Engineering Agency launched the Taipei Water Facilities Improvement Project in 2020. This initiative involves a comprehensive inventory and assessment of all facilities, identification of issues, supply-demand analysis, and planning for infrastructure upgrades, including water facilities and transmission mains. By implementing this plan, the goal is to restore functionality, extend service life, and build a safer, more stable, and sustainable next-generation water supply system.

Ⅱ. Objectives and Benefits

　　This plan focuses on two main pillars: site Improvement and water trunks Improvement, with three overarching goals: stabilizing supply, optimizing management, and strengthening disaster resilience, as outlined below:

(1) Stabilizing Supply: Upgrading aging and deteriorated facilities and pipelines will extend their life cycle, enhance overall system efficiency, increase reserve and backup capacity, optimize water resource utilization, and reduce the need for premature reinvestment—maximizing system performance.

(2) Optimizing Management: Revitalizing infrastructure will improve operational flexibility, support energy-efficient operations, and enhance water quality. Through monitoring systems and early warning mechanisms, the plan will strengthen the intelligent management of booster stations and distribution networks, improving overall operational effectiveness.

(3) Strengthening Disaster Resilience: The plan will improve the system’s disaster response capabilities by reinforcing foundational infrastructure and reducing the risk of facility and pipeline failures caused by natural disasters. This ensures a reliable water supply during emergencies and advances the goal of strengthened disaster preparedness and response.

　　As the Taipei water supply system continues to age over time, and with the increasing frequency of environmental and geological disasters caused by climate change, facilities improvement project has become a central focus for future operations. Through this project, the Taipei Water Department will inventory aging facilities and develop corresponding improvement strategies aimed at enhancing disaster resilience, reducing water supply risks, and improving system management through optimization. By strengthening the foundations of stable supply, management optimization, and disaster resilience, and in alignment with the City Government’s smart city initiative, this project also supports the advancement of intelligent water supply systems—with the ultimate goal of building a safe, stable, and sustainable next-generation water supply network while enhancing the city’s overall resilience.

Ⅲ. Service Population and Water Demand

　　The target year for this project is 2041, with a projected service population of 4,271,966 people and a total water demand of 2,934,000 CMD (cubic meters per day).

Ⅳ. Scope

　　This plan is structured around two major components: Site Improvement (including plants and stations) and water Transmissions Improvement (including trunks and pipelines). The key tasks are summarized as follows:

(1) Sites Improvement: Conduct preliminary seismic assessments of station facilities and evaluate aging infrastructure. Based on these assessments, propose improvement plans and implement them in phases.

(2) Water Transmissions Improvement: Optimize hydraulic models for each water supply districts, including analysis of optimal operating strategies, most cost-effective pipe diameters, temporal factors, and pressure distribution. Perform backup system analysis, and based on the modeling results, develop execution plans and construction methods for the designated pipelines, including feasibility assessments for shutdown operations and contingency measures, followed by phased implementation.

　　The total project duration is 15 years, spanning from 2020 to 2034. The total project budget is USD 596 million, with phased implementation approved by the City Council. Phase I, spanning 2020 to 2024 over a period of five years, has an approved budget of USD 91 million.