The Ministry of Economic Affairs is preparing to hold a series of energy conferences in June to set standards for greenhouse gas emissions and establish quotas for local industries.
The ministry made the announcement on Monday night just ahead of the Kyoto Protocol, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, coming into effect today.
Although Taiwan is not a signatory of the global agreement because it is not a member of the UN, the government will work to keep in line with the international trend toward environmental protection as a citizen of the global community, said Wang Yunn-ming (
According to information from the ministry, Taiwan ranks 22nd on the list of the world's highest carbon dioxide producing countries, accounting for 1 percent of annual industrial emissions worldwide.
The June conference will focus on six major elements of the protocol, including strategies to reduce carbon dioxide, policies for energy, industrial and transportation departments and industries affected.
Two or three months after the conference, the government will establish emissions standards for various industries and set rules for regulating gas emissions among companies, Wang said.
The government's efforts, however, are considered belated by some, and several activists from environmental groups protested nude in front of the Executive Yuan yesterday.
The government last month gave the green light for Chinese Petroleum Corp (
The protesters said the government has sacrificed the environment for economic benefits, as studies shows that the nation's economic growth rate would be cut by 0.4 percent to 0.6 percent per year should the government fully comply with terms of the protocol.
In response, Wang said the protocol will have a long-term and comprehensive effect on Taiwan's economic growth, and as such the government needs more time to lay out a policy.
As for the government's approval of the two Yunlin County investment projects, Wang said the government has requested that the two companies use the most advanced and efficient equipment and production methods in order to minimize greenhouse gas emissions.
"We still need to give priority to the nation's interests while complying with the protocol," he said.
The steel and petrochemical industries, which are identified as pumping out 27 percent and 16 percent of Taiwan's greenhouse gases respectively, said that they have tried to enhance energy efficiency since the protocol was drafted five years ago.
"We have cut emission levels by improving equipment and steelmaking techniques, or have used other materials to replace coal over the last five years," said Wu Sheng-feng (吳聖峰), chief executive of the Taiwan Steel and Iron Industries Association (台灣鋼鐵公會).
Wu said although companies need to pay more to upgrade their equipment, they have also benefitted from reduced production costs.
Jack Hsieh (謝俊雄), executive director of Petrochemical Industry Association of Taiwan (台灣石化公會), also said that since 1997, member companies have been voluntarily trying to reduce energy usage and look for alternative, less polluting, sources of energy, and the results have been quite good.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last