The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) launched the new “Taiwan Marine Waste Management Action Plan” last month and set a clear policy timetable to achieve the nation’s plastic-free ocean goal by 2030.
To cut a massive source of marine pollution, the EPA is planning to ban all single-use plastic items, such as straws, shopping bags and disposable cups, and to force major chain restaurants and shops to stop providing them to customers from next year.
The EPA is also revising the Marine Pollution Control Act (海洋污染防治法) to increase the maximum fine for ocean pollution.
To implement the law more effectively this time around, the EPA decided to partner with several environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) — Greenpeace Taiwan, the Marine Citizen’s Foundation, the Wilderness Protection Association, Haiyong Studio and the Environmental Information Association — and set up the “platform for the management of marine debris” in July last year.
This platform is a landmark example of harnessing public-private partnerships for marine conservation. It has hosted a series of public consultations and policy forums in the past few months. Under this new initiative, the NGOs are helping the government prevent marine pollution and monitor policy enforcement.
Globally, environmental governance is changing. The key role of non-state actors, such as NGOs and the private sector, has been shaped by their presence at important international environmental conferences, such as the UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in 1972, in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and in Johannesburg in 2002.
The value of public participation has also been recognized by the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 21 and the EU’s Aarhus Convention.
It is important for Taiwan to understand what elements make multi-actor alliances work and explore how these lessons can be adapted to Taiwan’s circumstances.
First, creating a flexible and enabling regulatory system is a fundamental condition for long-lasting collaborations among multi-sector stakeholders. The legal framework should stimulate grassroots innovation and meet citizens’ needs.
Taiwan needs to review the possible institutional obstacles of its Government Procurement Act (政府採購法), Civil Associations Act (人民團體法) and other legislation that regulate social enterprises and NGOs.
Second, there is a need to acknowledge the value and power of four technological forces — social, mobile, cloud and “big data.” These frontiers are shaping the theories and practices of nature conservation and pollution management.
In 2012, China was forced to disclose its real air pollution information after the US embassy in Beijing tweeted its data and started an Internet firestorm among Chinese.
Environmental informatics has reformed how people engage with science and democracy.
Third, much of the work on environmental management is being done at a local level. Several advanced policy instruments call for involvement at local, national and global levels. Agenda 21 requires local governments to formulate their own “Local Agenda 21.”
The coordination platform between the EPA and environmental groups also needs to enhance participation from local governments.
So far, Taiwan’s plastic-free ocean initiatives have made progress. The government-NGO platform is a reminder to rethink regulation setting, utilize technological “game changers” and work closely with local institutions.
Yang Chung-han is a doctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge’s Centre for Environment, Energy and Natural Resource Governance.
China badly misread Japan. It sought to intimidate Tokyo into silence on Taiwan. Instead, it has achieved the opposite by hardening Japanese resolve. By trying to bludgeon a major power like Japan into accepting its “red lines” — above all on Taiwan — China laid bare the raw coercive logic of compellence now driving its foreign policy toward Asian states. From the Taiwan Strait and the East and South China Seas to the Himalayan frontier, Beijing has increasingly relied on economic warfare, diplomatic intimidation and military pressure to bend neighbors to its will. Confident in its growing power, China appeared to believe
After more than three weeks since the Honduran elections took place, its National Electoral Council finally certified the new president of Honduras. During the campaign, the two leading contenders, Nasry Asfura and Salvador Nasralla, who according to the council were separated by 27,026 votes in the final tally, promised to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan if elected. Nasralla refused to accept the result and said that he would challenge all the irregularities in court. However, with formal recognition from the US and rapid acknowledgment from key regional governments, including Argentina and Panama, a reversal of the results appears institutionally and politically
In 2009, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) made a welcome move to offer in-house contracts to all outsourced employees. It was a step forward for labor relations and the enterprise facing long-standing issues around outsourcing. TSMC founder Morris Chang (張忠謀) once said: “Anything that goes against basic values and principles must be reformed regardless of the cost — on this, there can be no compromise.” The quote is a testament to a core belief of the company’s culture: Injustices must be faced head-on and set right. If TSMC can be clear on its convictions, then should the Ministry of Education
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) provided several reasons for military drills it conducted in five zones around Taiwan on Monday and yesterday. The first was as a warning to “Taiwanese independence forces” to cease and desist. This is a consistent line from the Chinese authorities. The second was that the drills were aimed at “deterrence” of outside military intervention. Monday’s announcement of the drills was the first time that Beijing has publicly used the second reason for conducting such drills. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership is clearly rattled by “external forces” apparently consolidating around an intention to intervene. The targets of
RSS