Legislators and environmental conservation groups yesterday called on Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) and the Ministry of Economic Affairs to hold an administrative hearing to allow for broader civic participation in issues surrounding the sealing of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Gongliao District (貢寮), which could cost up to NT$2 billion (US$66.4 million) a year in maintenance.
Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association attorney Tsai Ya-ying (蔡雅瀅) told a press conference in Taipei that an administrative hearing would call for both advocates and detractors of the issue to provide documented evidence in the debating process.
“The result would be a substantial debate, rather than both sides feuding with each other,” she said, adding that it would be an effective way for Taipower to explore new ideas in its policymaking.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Ou-po (陳歐珀) said a Taipower draft detailing the plan to shutter the plant has yet to be delivered to the legislature for deliberation since the Executive Yuan issued an order on April 27 to seal the plant.
He said that he and other legislators were refused a copy of the draft from Taipower and the ministry, which he criticized as violating the legislators’ right to monitor government policies.
Quoting Minister of Economic Affairs Chang Chia-juch (張家祝), who said in May that the estimated maintenance fees for the shuttered nuclear plant stood at approximately NT$2 billion annually, Green Citizens’ Action Alliance secretary-general Tsuei Su-hsin (崔愫欣) called into question the real purpose of the money, saying that she suspects the government is planning to use it to complete the construction of the heavily criticized No. 1 reactor.
Citing an announcement issued by the Executive Yuan in April, which stated that no additional money would go into the budget for the Gongliao plant before its future is determined by a plebiscite, she urged Taipower and the ministry to provide the public with a comprehensive report specifying how they plan to spend the proposed NT$2 billion and how the plant would be sealed as soon as possible.
DPP Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) criticized the plan to shutter the plant as “unnecessary,” as it would only waste more taxpayers’ money.
She said that Taipower is on the verge of bankruptcy and has submitted a request to the ministry to either allocate a budget for the plan, or impose what she called a “shutter tax,” which would result in all Taiwanese paying for the plan.
The draft, which is to be delivered to the Executive Yuan for approval before being deliberated on by the legislature, was returned to Taipower by Chang earlier this month, who told the company that certain details “need adjustments.”
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
FATALITIES: The storm claimed at least two lives — a female passenger in a truck that was struck by a falling tree and a man who was hit by a utility pole Workers cleared fallen trees and shop owners swept up debris yesterday after one of the biggest typhoons to hit the nation in decades claimed at least two lives. Typhoon Kong-rey was packing winds of 184kph when it slammed into eastern Taiwan on Thursday, uprooting trees, triggering floods and landslides, and knocking out power as it swept across the nation. A 56-year-old female foreign national died from her injuries after the small truck she was in was struck by a falling tree on Provincial Highway 14A early on Thursday. The second death was reported at 8pm in Taipei on Thursday after a 48-year-old man
RSS