Zhonghe Ruishui Water Reservoir Introduction
The Zhonghe area was originally a settlement for indigenous peoples until the sixth year of the Qianlong period (1741), when Han people from Fujian and Guangdong came to Taiwan for cultivation, marking the first recorded Han villages. After Japan took control of Taiwan in the twenty-eighth year of the Meiji era (1895), in response to the need for improved water quality and the "Shanben Coal Mine" washing and processing in the Haishan area, construction of the Banqiao waterway began in the third year of the Showa era (1928) and was put into operation the following year. The Ruìsuì Reservoir, established in the fourth year of the Showa era (1929), is located on Ruìsuì Highland and serves as a dividing point for water delivery and distribution. With the construction of Banqiao Station, the area developed rapidly, attracting a large population, prompting the Japanese authorities to plan an expansion of the Banqiao waterway in the sixteenth year of the Showa era (1941), but it was halted due to the outbreak of the Pacific War. After the restoration, the waterway system was severely damaged due to the war, leading to a significant reduction in water supply. The government planned repairs and expansions, during which the waterway system established during the Japanese occupation gradually ceased to exist. In the fifty-second year of the Republic (1963), water was sourced from the Xindian River, gradually replacing groundwater, and by the sixty-third year of the Republic (1974), surface water from the Dahan River was adopted as the water source. The Banqiao area's tap water system was completed, completely replacing groundwater, with only the Ruìsuì Reservoir from the Japanese occupation period being preserved in relatively complete condition. The reservoir has served a water supply function since the Japanese occupation, with its water source provided from the current Yonghe Water Source Road outlet, further linking the development of the two areas and representing an important historical site in the modernization of waterway development.
