Thermal discharge from the Third Nuclear Power Plant is behind the rapid destruction of Kenting National Park’s coral reef, a marine researcher said, warning that the reef’s disappearance would jeopardize the fishing industry and ecosystem.
Allan Chen (陳昭倫), a research fellow with Academia Sinica’s Research Center for Biodiversity, said the plant has accelerated the deterioration of coral by emitting thermal discharge that has driven seawater temperatures 1.5°C to 2°C higher over the past 26 years.
The number of varieties of coral has fallen from between 20 and 30 that existed 26 years ago to three today, Chen said.
Except for the sandy area off western Taiwan, coral can be found all around the nation and off Penghu, where the water temperature has shot up by 1.09°C in recent years. Coral reefs are considered the most important marine ecosystem for the fishing industry, tourism, culture, medicine and coastline protection, Chen said.
Chen’s research shows that Taiwan’s seawater temperature peaked between the 1970s and the 1980s, in line with global trends. In the last six decades, the average temperature of Taiwan’s seawater has risen 0.79°C, slightly higher than the 0.5°C experienced by other tropical sea regions in the world.
Scientists have warned that if global warming continues at its current pace, the world’s coral reefs will completely disintegrate by the end of the century.
Industrial waste, overfishing, pollution, ocean acidification and typhoons all contribute to the destruction and bleaching of coral reefs, the scientist said.
He said the live coral coverage rate in Kenting now was about 70 percent, roughly the same as in 1986, but that the rate could be a misleading indicator because coverage rate does not mean the live corals are fully functioning.
“It’s like tearing down a multifunctional high-rise building like Taipei 101 and replacing the area with one-story houses. You lose most of the original diversity and functionality,” he said.
In related news, a group of rare soft corals has been discovered off the coast of Rueifang Township (瑞芳), Taipei County.
Wang Min-hsian (王銘祥), who made the discovery, described the area as an underwater “crystal palace,” but he said he feared the coral would be destroyed if plans to build a wharf near the site proceed.
INVESTIGATION: The case is the latest instance of a DPP figure being implicated in an espionage network accused of allegedly leaking information to Chinese intelligence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑) was detained and held incommunicado yesterday on suspicion of spying for China during his tenure as assistant to then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮). The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Ho was implicated during its investigation into alleged spying activities by former Presidential Office consultant Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨). Prosecutors said there is reason to believe Ho breached the National Security Act (國家安全法) by leaking classified Ministry of Foreign Affairs information to Chinese intelligence. Following interrogation, prosecutors petitioned the Taipei District Court to detain Ho, citing concerns over potential collusion or tampering of evidence. The
TRADE: The premier pledged safeguards on ‘Made in Taiwan’ labeling, anti-dumping measures and stricter export controls to strengthen its position in trade talks Products labeled “made in Taiwan” must be genuinely made in Taiwan, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, vowing to enforce strict safeguards against “origin laundering” and initiate anti-dumping investigations to prevent China dumping its products in Taiwan. Cho made the remarks in a discussion session with representatives from industries in Kaohsiung. In response to the US government’s recent announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on its trading partners, President William Lai (賴清德) and Cho last week began a series of consultations with industry leaders nationwide to gather feedback and address concerns. Taiwanese and US officials held a videoconference on Friday evening to discuss the
NEGOTIATIONS: The US response to the countermeasures and plans Taiwan presented has been positive, including boosting procurement and investment, the president said Taiwan is included in the first group for trade negotiations with the US, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, as he seeks to shield Taiwanese exporters from a 32 percent tariff. In Washington, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview on Fox News on Thursday that he would speak to his Taiwanese and Israeli counterparts yesterday about tariffs after holding a long discussion with the Vietnamese earlier. US President Donald Trump on Wednesday postponed punishing levies on multiple trade partners, including Taiwan, for three months after trillions of US dollars were wiped off global markets. He has maintained a 10 percent
PERSONAL DATA: The implicated KMT members allegedly compiled their petitions by copying names from party lists without the consent of the people concerned Judicial authorities searched six locations yesterday and questioned six people, including one elderly Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) member and five KMT Youth League associates, about alleged signature forgery and fraud relating to their recall efforts against two Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. After launching a probe into alleged signature forgery and related fraud in the KMT’s recall effort, prosecutors received a number of complaints, including about one petition that had 1,748 signatures of voters whose family members said they had already passed away, and also voters who said they did not approve the use of their name, Taipei Deputy Chief Prosecutor
RSS