Air pollution is an issue that could be resolved with a long-term plan and not just by canceling a one-day event, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday, after environmental groups called for New Year’s Eve fireworks displays to be canceled to reduce air pollution.
This year’s celebrations coincided with the worst air pollution in the nation in three years, with many areas in western Taiwan registering “red” levels, meaning “unhealthy,” due to high concentration of airborne particles.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare urged people to take protective measures against air pollution when going outside.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
The Environmental Protection Administration urged factories to halt their operations on the evening of New Year’s Eve and amusement parks to reduce firework displays, while advising people not to stay outdoors for long periods or light barbecues.
Taiwan Healthy Air Action Alliance director Yeh Kuang-peng (葉光芃) asked why the government did not cancel fireworks displays when air pollution reached serious levels.
Vehicles heading to New Year’s Eve celebrations also increased carbon emissions, another environmental group said.
The fireworks display at Taipei 101 lasted six minutes this year, the longest ever.
Speaking at a walking event held at Taipei Flora Expo Park (台北花博公園) yesterday morning, Ko said: “Air pollution is a daily problem, because people breathe every second, so it should be dealt with through an overall plan.”
“There are 365 days in a year, but the firework display was only about 300 seconds, so we need a long-term plan to solve the problem,” he said.
About 2.59 million people used the Taipei MRT System between 6am on New Year’s Eve and 6am yesterday, and about 371,000 people used the four stations nearest to Taipei City Hall station, where the New Year’s Eve countdown party was held, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said.
While the number of passengers at the four stations rose by 31,000 from last year, the total number of passengers on all MRT lines decreased by about 46,000, it said.
Ko did not finish the walking event, saying he was tired from attending the countdown party and the flag-raising ceremony early in the morning.
Ko made a 34-minute Facebook live broadcast that began at 10:35pm on New Year’s Eve, saying his New Year’s wish was “to sleep 6.5 hours every day” and “to live every day earnestly and happily,” adding that he would pretend to be happy if that is not possible.
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
BITTERLY COLD: The inauguration ceremony for US president-elect Donald Trump has been moved indoors due to cold weather, with the new venue lacking capacity A delegation of cross-party lawmakers from Taiwan, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), for the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, would not be able to attend the ceremony, as it is being moved indoors due to forecasts of intense cold weather in Washington tomorrow. The inauguration ceremony for Trump and US vice president-elect JD Vance is to be held inside the Capitol Rotunda, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. A person familiar with the issue yesterday said although the outdoor inauguration ceremony has been relocated, Taiwan’s legislative delegation has decided to head off to Washington as scheduled. The delegation
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
Another wave of cold air would affect Taiwan starting from Friday and could evolve into a continental cold mass, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Temperatures could drop below 10°C across Taiwan on Monday and Tuesday next week, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. Seasonal northeasterly winds could bring rain, he said. Meanwhile, due to the continental cold mass and radiative cooling, it would be cold in northern and northeastern Taiwan today and tomorrow, according to the CWA. From last night to this morning, temperatures could drop below 10°C in northern Taiwan, it said. A thin coat of snow
RSS