In order to disclose real-time automated water quality monitoring data, raise the utilization efficiency of livestock waste, and simplify management and review procedures, on 6 July 2016 the EPA preannounced amendments to the Water Pollution Control Measures and Test Reporting Management Regulations. The regulations being amended cover management of the utilization of livestock waste fermentation liquid and sediment, automated monitoring facilities, and other items. The Water Pollution Control Measures and Test Reporting Management Regulations were first promulgated on 16 October 2006, and have been revised four times. The regulations have led to the establishment of a wide-ranging set of water pollution prevention measures along with the use of automated water quality monitoring facilities that provide real-time data on effluent water quality. The regulations have also led to the utilization of livestock waste, thus reducing pollution from source. To further reduce water pollution, the EPA has produced draft amendments to 19 of the existing articles, has added one article and deleted another. The main points of the amendments are as follows: 1) The addition of operators of livestock slurry oxidation treatment facilities and slurry recycling centers as users of livestock waste fermentation liquid and sediment – for use as fertilizer for agricultural land. 2) Kidney dialysis centers will henceforth be required to submit a wastewater management plan to their local competent authority for approval before commencing operations. However, they will be exempt from submitting the water test reports required by the regulations. 3) All water pollution prevention facilities and piping should henceforth be correctly labelled with details consistent with those on the relevant permits. Violators will first be given advice on – and a deadline for – correcting the labelling. If the labelling has not been improved by the given deadline, fines will be levied. 4) The stipulations on the automated monitoring facilities, electricity meters, display systems that serious violators are required to install, installation rules and the reporting procedures for display screen breakdowns have been integrated and simplified. 5) The agricultural competent authority has been authorized to determine the minimum number of days for the anaerobic fermentation of livestock waste slurry based on case-by-case review results of utilization plans. On-site inspections for fermentation liquid and sediment utilization plans will be conducted on a flexible basis. 6) The items required to be tested for fermentation liquid and sediment, as well as surrounding soil and groundwater, have been simplified. Owners of irrigated agricultural land where the direction of groundwater flow is not clear will need to submit monitoring data conducted by the relevant government agencies. 7) In tandem with the addition of a list of suitable users for using fermentation liquid and sediment as fertilizer for agricultural land, the provisions governing accompanying documents for, items to be recorded in, changes to, and suspension and revocation of utilization plans have been amended. 8) When two or more sources of wastewaters containing harmful substances are mixed and discharged, the sampling locations for the wastewaters before the mixing occurs have been clarified. 9) Regarding the effluent volume calculation methodology for enterprises that should install automated monitoring facilities, greywater, non-contact cooling water and run-off wastewater will be calculated as workstation wastewater. 10) For facilities that should install automated monitoring equipment, regulations governing installation and completion deadlines have been clarified. To respond to information disclosure and calls from environmental organizations for online transmission of real-time monitoring data, enterprises that have a daily effluent discharge permit for 1,500 m3-5,000 m3 must transmit their monitoring data online to the local competent authority. 11) The application procedure for the installation of automated monitoring equipment has been simplified. 12) The application procedure for changing or replacing automated monitoring equipment has been simplified. Only the replacement of monitoring apparatus, as well as data collation and processing systems and the correspondingly changed operational manual need to be approved before the change. After the change, the confirmation report has to be approved by the competent authority as well. Changes in the location of monitoring equipment only require submission of a confirmation report within 30 days after the location change. 13) People who deliver or receive sludge to be used as fertilizer must inform their local competent authority 24 hours before the delivery or receiving take place. Livestock enterprises that have approval from the agricultural competent authority to use fermentation liquid and sediment, and operators of livestock waste recycling centers, must transport or pipe the fermentation liquid and sediment according to the relevant utilization plans. 14) In response to actual conditions, operating regulations for facilities with automated monitoring equipment have been revised, covering the operation of effluent water quality monitoring facilities, storage of monitoring data and measurements taken, and the installation of automated water quality monitoring equipment and video cameras. Regulations governing related variation testing and verification of automated water quality monitoring facilities have also been revised.