August 2017
Vehicles operated by waste disposal businesses in the disposal of wastes shall be equipped with a real-time monitoring system that should be maintained for normal operation so that the competent authority may track the routes taken by the vehicles at any time in order to facilitate administration(Taiwan)
2016.11.30
Ankwei Chen
The Taichung High Administrative Court rendered the 105-Su-289 Administrative Decision on November 30, 2016 (the "Decision"), in which it held that vehicles operated by waste disposal businesses in the disposal of wastes shall be equipped with a real-time monitoring system that should be maintained for normal operation so that the competent authority may track the routes taken by the vehicles at any time in order to facilitate administration.
In this case, the plaintiff driver was found to have removed the real-time monitoring system (the ÒGPS deviceÓ) on the subject vehicle when transporting and dumping wastes such as liquid and solid manure. As a result the GPS device cannot report back the plaintiff driverÕs route in the vehicle, and the defendant concluded that this was in violation of administrative rules on licensing. The license was then revoked, and the plaintiff initiated this administrative appeal to contest the order.
According to the Decision, Article 31, Paragraph 3 of the Waste Disposal Law provides that vehicles designated and announced by the central competent authority shall be compliant with the specifications set out by the central competent authority, with a real-time tracking system installed and maintained in normal operation. Thus, when a driver from a waste cleanup/disposal business operates such a vehicle, the GPS device shall be installed and maintained in normal operation so that the competent authority may track the vehicleÕs route at any time for administration and prevent serious environmental pollution as a result of unlawful disposal the wastes by the business.
The Decision thus reasoned that it has been more than two years since the plaintiff, who was established in 1995, obtained a waste disposal license to the time the defendant became aware of this violation, it is impossible for the plaintiff to not know the illegality of removing the GPS device as it engaged in its primary business of cleaning up and disposing of wastes such as liquid or solid manure. In addition, the plaintiff seemed to wish not letting the defendant to track the vehicleÕs route in real time so as to conceal its unlawful dumping of wastes. As such, the defendantÕs ruling that the plaintiff has committed a serious violation sufficient for revocation of the license was compliant with the law, and the plaintiffÕs appeal was dismissed.
Ankwei Chen
The Taichung High Administrative Court rendered the 105-Su-289 Administrative Decision on November 30, 2016 (the "Decision"), in which it held that vehicles operated by waste disposal businesses in the disposal of wastes shall be equipped with a real-time monitoring system that should be maintained for normal operation so that the competent authority may track the routes taken by the vehicles at any time in order to facilitate administration.
In this case, the plaintiff driver was found to have removed the real-time monitoring system (the ÒGPS deviceÓ) on the subject vehicle when transporting and dumping wastes such as liquid and solid manure. As a result the GPS device cannot report back the plaintiff driverÕs route in the vehicle, and the defendant concluded that this was in violation of administrative rules on licensing. The license was then revoked, and the plaintiff initiated this administrative appeal to contest the order.
According to the Decision, Article 31, Paragraph 3 of the Waste Disposal Law provides that vehicles designated and announced by the central competent authority shall be compliant with the specifications set out by the central competent authority, with a real-time tracking system installed and maintained in normal operation. Thus, when a driver from a waste cleanup/disposal business operates such a vehicle, the GPS device shall be installed and maintained in normal operation so that the competent authority may track the vehicleÕs route at any time for administration and prevent serious environmental pollution as a result of unlawful disposal the wastes by the business.
The Decision thus reasoned that it has been more than two years since the plaintiff, who was established in 1995, obtained a waste disposal license to the time the defendant became aware of this violation, it is impossible for the plaintiff to not know the illegality of removing the GPS device as it engaged in its primary business of cleaning up and disposing of wastes such as liquid or solid manure. In addition, the plaintiff seemed to wish not letting the defendant to track the vehicleÕs route in real time so as to conceal its unlawful dumping of wastes. As such, the defendantÕs ruling that the plaintiff has committed a serious violation sufficient for revocation of the license was compliant with the law, and the plaintiffÕs appeal was dismissed.
