Wen Lii, Director of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)’s newly-launched Lienchiang County Chapter based on the Matsu Islands, wrote in The Diplomat (August 12) that because of growing public concern over thousands of illegal Chinese sand dredging ships in the Taiwan Strait, the Taiwan government is considering new regulations that would facilitate "sinking" Chinese dredgers seized by Taiwan’s coast guard, including for use as artificial reefs or as target ships in military exercises. He said illegal Chinese vessels have not been limited to waters near Matsu, but other offshore island counties such as Kinmen and Penghu have also witnessed a large increase in Chinese dredgers, which reportedly draw up to 100,000 tons of sand daily posing an environmental concern. Wen Lii disclosed that the United States too has hinted at sanctions on Chinese companies involved in land reclamation and dredging in the South China Sea.