Officials at the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) called for a change in the nation's industrial structure yesterday, as the average amount of carbon dioxide each person in Taiwan emits per year is now three times the global average.
"Manufacturers in Taiwan must start focusing on two things," said Yeh Fung-luh (
Yeh's statement came as a response to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report released last year, in which it said that, in 2005, each person in Taiwan generated an average of 12 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
PHOTO: SU MENG-CHUAN, TAIPEI TIMES
The average global emission per person during the same year was four tonnes per person.
Young Chea-yuan (楊之遠), the director-general of the Air Quality Protection and Noise Control department, said yesterday that a recent report published by the Intra-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) -- an organization that examines greenhouse gas emissions and their impact on climate change at the UN -- has estimated that global temperatures will rise in the next few years. The report also said that some countries in Africa could potentially suffer more droughts in the next 50 years.
Young said that the climate in Taiwan may also get drier, adding that the Hsinchu Science Park and the Reservoir in Shimen (石門) might suffer water shortages in the future.
Meanwhile, statistics released by the Central Weather Bureau yesterday painted an equally bleak picture of global climate change.
During the last century, residents in Taipei have experienced on average 19.7 days a year when the daily temperature has exceeded 35oC. Within the past decade, however, that number has increased to 33.7 days a year. Twice within the past five years high temperatures of 35oC and above have lasted for over 40 days.
Also, compared to the past century, the relative humidity in Taipei has decreased approximately 5 percent.
To educate the public about the consequences of global warming, the EPA has decided to cooperate with the National Geographic Channel in Taiwan and hold a series of events to observe International Earth Day which falls on April 22.
EPA Minister Chang Kow-lung (張國龍) will be the official spokesperson of the campaign.
The campaign will include 24-hours of TV programs on global warming and its impact on the global environment to be broadcast on Earth Day. An online quiz will also be held whereby the public can test their knowledge of global warming and its related issues. Anybody with a perfect score on the quiz will be entered into a drawing for a free trip to the Amazon rain forest.
INFRASTRUCTURE: Work on the second segment, from Kaohsiung to Pingtung, is expected to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2039, the railway bureau said Planned high-speed rail (HSR) extensions would blanket Taiwan proper in four 90-minute commute blocs to facilitate regional economic and livelihood integration, Railway Bureau Deputy Director-General Yang Cheng-chun (楊正君) said in an interview published yesterday. A project to extend the high-speed rail from Zuoying Station in Kaohsiung to Pingtung County’s Lioukuaicuo Township (六塊厝) is the first part of the bureau’s greater plan to expand rail coverage, he told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times). The bureau’s long-term plan is to build a loop to circle Taiwan proper that would consist of four sections running from Taipei to Hualien, Hualien to
The Civil Aviation Administration yesterday said that it is considering punishments for China Airlines (CAL) and Starlux Airlines for making hard landings and overworking their cabin crew when the nation was hit by Typhoon Kong-rey in October last year. The civil aviation authority launched an investigation after media reported that many airlines were forced to divert their flights to different airports or go around after failing to land when the typhoon affected the nation on Oct. 30 and 31 last year. The agency reviewed 503 flights dispatched by Taiwanese airlines during those two days, as well as weather data, flight hours
Three people have had their citizenship revoked after authorities confirmed that they hold Chinese ID cards, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said yesterday. Two of the three people were featured in a recent video about Beijing’s “united front” tactics by YouTuber Pa Chiung (八炯) and Taiwanese rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源), including Su Shi-en (蘇士恩), who displayed a Chinese ID card in the video, and taekwondo athlete Lee Tung-hsien (李東憲), who mentioned he had obtained a Chinese ID card in a telephone call with Chen, Liang told the council’s weekly news conference. Lee, who reportedly worked in
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
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