A poll released on Wednesday suggested that more than 80 percent of the public would be willing to pay higher electricity bills to help reduce the risks of climate disasters.
Lin Mu-xing (林木興), a research fellow at National Taiwan University’s Risk Society and Policy Research Center, at a news conference said that the study suggested 83 percent of the public would be happy to pay a higher rate per unit of power to help protect the environment and mitigate the risk of climate emergencies.
The current rate per kilowatt-hour is NT$2.60 (US$0.08). Lin said 30 percent of people said they would be willing to pay an additional fee of less than NT$1 per kilowatt-hour, with another 30 percent saying they would pay an extra NT$1 to NT$2 and 12.5 percent of people saying they would be willing to pay an extra NT$2 to NT$3.
Photo: CNA
Only 11.6 percent of respondents said they would not be willing to pay extra, Lin added.
Lin said that the data suggested 40 percent of those willing to pay between NT$3 and NT$3.5 per kilowatt-hour were aged 21 to 30, while a majority of those willing to pay NT$2.7 to NT$2.9 per kilowatt-hour were aged 50 or older.
Chou Kuei-tien (周桂田), director of the research center, said the findings also suggested most people were aware of the importance of transitioning to renewable energy and that the government should be outlining more specific plans as to how it plans to do this.
As well as having a clear understanding of the importance of renewable power, nearly 50 percent of the respondents thought it was important to have diversified energy sources to ensure resilience, Chou said.
Chou added that 52 percent of the respondents thought renewable energy should be developed more quickly, while only 6.9 percent believed the nation needs nuclear energy.
The government needs to increase the cost of electricity to be able to create a more resilient power grid, Chou said.
The survey was conducted by telephone from May 29 to June 25 on 1,075 people aged 18 or older.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
MILITARY AID: Taiwan has received a first batch of US long-range tactical missiles ahead of schedule, with a second shipment expected to be delivered by 2026 The US’ early delivery of long-range tactical ballistic missiles to Taiwan last month carries political and strategic significance, a military source said yesterday. According to the Ministry of National Defense’s budget report, the batch of military hardware from the US, including 11 sets of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and 64 MGM-140 Army Tactical Missile Systems, had been scheduled to be delivered to Taiwan between the end of this year and the beginning of next year. However, the first batch arrived last month, earlier than scheduled, with the second batch —18 sets of HIMARS, 20 MGM-140 missiles and 864 M30
Representative to the US Alexander Yui delivered a letter from the government to US president-elect Donald Trump during a meeting with a former Trump administration official, CNN reported yesterday. Yui on Thursday met with former US national security adviser Robert O’Brien over a private lunch in Salt Lake City, Utah, with US Representative Chris Stewart, the Web site of the US cable news channel reported, citing three sources familiar with the matter. “During that lunch the letter was passed along, and then shared with Trump, two of the sources said,” CNN said. O’Brien declined to comment on the lunch, as did the Taipei
A woman who allegedly attacked a high-school student with a utility knife, injuring his face, on a Taipei metro train late on Friday has been transferred to prosecutors, police said yesterday. The incident occurred near MRT Xinpu Station at about 10:17pm on a Bannan Line train headed toward Dingpu, New Taipei City police said. Before police arrived at the station to arrest the suspect, a woman surnamed Wang (王) who is in her early 40s, she had already been subdued by four male passengers, one of whom was an off-duty Taipei police officer, police said. The student, 17, who sustained a cut about
RSS