Recent media reports that the Ministry of Economic Affairs had approved the mining of limestone in 12 mountain areas around Taiwan are very worrying. Apart from the Hsinchu County commissioner not having said anything on the matter yet, all other mayors, county commissioners and councils in areas where the permission for mining has been announced have strongly objected to the ministry’s decision.
I have researched environmental science and ecological conservation for almost 40 years. In the past, my calls for mangroves in the Jhuwei (竹圍) area of Danshuei Township (淡水鎮) to be protected were strongly supported by three media outlets and academics. Owing to former premier Sun Yun-suan’s (孫運璿) wisdom, a decision was made to protect mangroves in Danshuei and other areas.
The driftwood, landslides and thick mud left behind by Typhoon Morakot still have not been completely cleaned up and post-disaster reconstruction work is just about to begin. It is difficult to believe that under these circumstances, the ministry has given the go-ahead for forest area development, since that is one of the main causes of landslides. This is counterintuitive and makes me wonder if the government is thinking about protecting people’s lives and property or the interests of certain corporations.
I strongly protest the reopening of mining in Taiwan’s mountain areas, for the following reasons:
The cement industry uses vast amounts of energy and is a heavy polluter. Along with rising concerns worldwide about global warming and efforts to reduce carbon emissions and conserve energy, Taiwan stopped development of the cement industry several decades ago. I remember the mining operations in Kaohsiung City’s Banping Mountain (半屏山) and the resulting landslides that destroyed railroads and caused massive damage to life and property in the area more than 30 years ago. I remember feeling very upset on seeing bald cliff faces from the train passing Banping Mountain. Now, after decades of rest and rejuvenation, Banping Mountain is once again a beautiful and relaxing area covered in green vegetation. If mining had not been proscribed for that area at that time, the Morakot disaster could have caused even more damage.
The cement industry also emits high levels of dust and the production of cement creates hydrofluoric acid, an extremely acidic chemical that can strongly erode crops, buildings and clothing. In the 1980s, hydrofluoric acid was one of several pollutants emitted by a glass factory in Taoyuan County’s Bade Township (八德鄉), causing great damage to rice stalks, grapes, gladiolus, bamboo and Formosa acacia in the area, while also damaging the health of residents.
This is why environmental scientists and ecological conservationists are strongly against further development of industries using large amounts of energy and polluting the environment. Permitting mining to cater to corporate interests while ignoring the lives and health of residents and the environment is an incomprehensible thing for the government to do, especially before President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) policy to conserve energy and reduce carbon emissions is implemented and before the ministry’s Bureau of Mines completes economic impact assessments on the 12 areas listed for the future mining of limestone in central and southern Taiwan.
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