Environmental protection groups yesterday urged the government to halt a construction project by state-owned oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan in Taoyuan’s coastal Datan Village (大潭) to save algal reefs and to hold an official hearing on the issue.
The formation of the shallow-water algal reefs began about 7,500 years ago and they stretch along 27km of Taoyuan’s coast, geological research have found.
CPC’s plan to build the nation’s third liquefied natural gas terminal at the nearby Guantang Industrial Park could spell doom for the reefs, environmentalists have said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Taoyuan Local Union director Pan Chong-cheng (潘忠政) told a news conference that it was the 107th time they have held a news conference calling for protection for the reefs, but their efforts have been unfruitful and they question the commitment of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
Pan said Tsai met with the environmentalists on June 4 and asked Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) to be the contact person.
Lee during an hour-long discussion on June 16 agreed that construction causing serious damage to the reefs would be halted during the negotiation period, Pan said.
The first communication platform meeting at the Council of Agriculture on June 18 concluded that a “quasi-hearing” would be held, he said.
However, the environmentalists on Wednesday last week discovered that three large caissons, structures that keep water out of a construction site, and protective facilities were installed by CPC in the sea near the industrial park, damaging at least 0.5 hectares of the reefs.
Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association director Chen Hsien-cheng (陳憲政) said that when Tsai on June 4 told them that she cares about protecting the reefs, they thought they “finally saw the light” after so many years.
However, seeing the caissons made them question “her sincerity in communicating,” Chen said.
New Power Party Legislator Chen Jiau-hua (陳椒華) said that the government should halt the project immediately and improve its sustainable energy policies by developing rooftop solar systems.
“The government gives excuses, such as northern Taiwan having not enough sunlight to develop rooftop solar systems, but Japan, with its higher latitude, has many rooftop solar panels,” she said.
The government should stop procrastinating over its green energy policies and deceiving environmentalists, she said, adding that the government’s arrogance might lead to corruption.
Taiwan Citizens Participation Association director Ho Tsung-hsun (何宗勳) called for the construction project to be halted and for real negotiations to be held within a week, or else they would start a series of protests.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) supports peaceful unification with China, and President William Lai (賴清德) is “a bit naive” for being a “practical worker for Taiwanese independence,” former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said in an interview published yesterday. Asked about whether the KMT is on the same page as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) on the issue of Taiwanese independence or unification with China, Ma told the Malaysian Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew Daily that they are not. While the KMT supports peaceful unification and is against unification by force, the DPP opposes unification as such and
Taiwanese barista Xie Yi-chen (謝溢宸) recently triumphed at the 2024 World Coffee Championships, taking home 1st place in the World Latte Art category. Xie, 28, impressed the judges in the final round with patterns of a whale, a moose, and a dragon in the three-day competition that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark from June 27-29, clinching the title of latte art world champion during his first time representing Taiwan on the world stage. At a press conference held by the Taiwan Coffee Association on Thursday, Xie said that creating latte art gives him a tremendous feeling of achievement. Speaking about his entries in
The annual Taipei Summer Festival, which starts today, is to tone down its fireworks displays, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said on Monday. Fireworks displays are to be held at the riverside site in Datong District’s (大同) Dadaocheng (大稻埕) area on four days at this year’s festival, with the first today, and then on Wednesday next week, July 31 and Aug. 10, the department said. There were eight displays last year, with the reduction aimed at minimizing inconvenience to local residents, it said. The first three shows, which are all on Wednesdays, are to last for five minutes, while the final
EYE ON MAYORS: The DPP would file a complaint with the Control Yuan against Ko and Chiang over their handling of reports of abuse at a preschool in the city The Taipei City Government’s belated response under Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and his predecessor, Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), to alleged child sex abuse at a kindergarten resulted in more children being victimized, two Taipei City Councilors said yesterday. A Taipei preschool teacher has been charged with sexually abusing six children from 2021 to last year at a school registered to his mother. Prosecutors are reportedly considering additional charges amid a wave of new accusations allegedly linking the suspect to 20 other abused children and the discovery at his residence of more than 600 sexually explicit videos featuring minors. The