In response to budget cuts across the government, the Ministry of Environment (MOENV) intends to propose 15 energy-saving and carbon-reducing measures to the Government Alliance on Sustainability, Minister of Environment Peng Chi-ming (彭啟明) said today.
The alliance, which is to meet tomorrow, brings together all the deputy heads of the central government’s ministries, as well as representatives from each city and county in Taiwan.
The ministry’s utility expenses were cut by 10 percent and its operating expenses by 30 percent, Peng said.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
Looking for a silver lining to the budget cuts, the ministry decided to take advantage of the situation to boost energy-saving and carbon-reduction projects and goals, Peng said.
The other members of the group are to be informed tomorrow, he added.
One of the energy-saving goals Peng cited is to reduce lighting by 20 percent in its buildings, with greater cuts to lighting in public spaces to avoid impacting office workers.
Other measures include replacing desktop computers with laptops, avoiding using elevators when going to another level within three floors, adding another meatless meal day and replacing in-person meetings with video conferences, Peng said.
All these measures reduce carbon emissions, he added.
Starting from this month, the ministry is to launch a trial of no overtime on Fridays, Peng said.
This would not only reduce electricity usage, but also improve the workplace, he added.
Usually, reports need to be submitted to legislators on Monday, but in the future, after discussion with lawmakers, the ministry hopes it can receive time extensions on future submissions, Peng said.
The ministry also plans to reduce expenses by only retaining single copies of reports and magazines, and canceling subscriptions to print media, Peng said.
If the ministry’s budget is increased in the future, he said he would like to increase subscriptions once again, but for now the ministry is to rely on digital news outlets.
These moves have been reported to the Executive Yuan, Peng added.
At tomorrow’s meeting, the ministry intends to provide relevant suggestions, but local governments are to have the freedom to make adjustments based on their own needs, Peng said.
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