The Taipei City Government yesterday unveiled a map showing areas in the city prone to soil liquefaction, with 26.1 percent of the city having intermediate to high-level soil liquefaction potential.
Soil liquefaction is a geological phenomenon that occurs when shaking during an earthquake causes saturated granular material to behave like a liquid, potentially causing soil to be unable to support structures above it.
Soil liquefaction has become a prominent issue, as it is believed to have contributed to the collapse of the Weiguan Jinlong complex in Tainan that killed 115 people when a magnitude 6.4 earthquake hit the city on Feb. 6.
Photo: Hsu Yi-ping, Taipei Times
The city government map showed that 17.4 percent of Taipei is highly prone to soil liquefaction, while 8.7 percent and 1.5 percent of the city face intermediate and low risks of liquefaction respectively.
The Taipei Department of Public Works said 54.4 percent of the municipality is in mountainous areas, which are not at risk of liquefaction, while another 3.5 percent of land has not displayed any potential for liquefaction.
Liquefaction potential of 14.5 percent of the city could not be determined due to insufficient data.
Photo: Huang Chien-hao, Taipei Times
Notable landmarks that were identified by the map as in areas showing a high probability of soil liquefaction include Taipei 101 and the Taipei City Hall.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je’s (柯文哲) home on Xinyi Road was also found to be in an area showing a high risk of soil liquefaction.
In response to reporters’ questions about whether he was concerned about his home being vulnerable to earthquakes, Ko said he was not, as it was built after the 921 Earthquake in 1999.
He said that construction regulations introduced after the 921 Earthquake mandate sufficient seismic engineering work be carried out on new buildings.
He called on residents whose homes are deemed vulnerable to earthquakes to file a request with the city government to be part of the city’s urban renewal projects.
The department urged people not to panic if their homes are found to be in areas susceptible to liquefaction, as they might be eligible for an “old building health check” performed by the city’s Construction Management Office and receive subsidies if urban renewal efforts are deemed necessary for their homes.
Compared with the Executive Yuan’s query system for soil liquefaction potential, the map features a larger scale and is five times more accurate, the department said.
Residents can find out about the risk of soil liquefaction in their neighborhoods by entering their addresses on the city’s soil liquefaction query system: http://soil2.taipei/gismap.html.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest foundry service provider, yesterday said that global semiconductor revenue is projected to hit US$1.5 trillion in 2030, after the figure exceeds US$1 trillion this year, as artificial intelligence (AI) demand boosts consumption of token and compute power. “We are still at the beginning of the AI revolution, but we already see a significant impact across the whole semiconductor ecosystem,” TSMC deputy cochief operating officer Kevin Zhang (張曉強) said at the company’s annual technology symposium in Hsinchu City. “It is fair to say that in the past decade, smartphones and other mobile devices were
US-CHINA SUMMIT: MOFA welcomed US reassurance of no change in its Taiwan policy; Trump said he did not comment when Xi talked of opposing independence US President Donald Trump yesterday said he has not made a decision on whether to move forward with a major arms package for Taiwan after hearing concerns about it from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Trump’s comments on Taiwan came as he flew back to Washington after wrapping up critical talks in which both leaders said important progress was made in stabilizing US-China relations even as deep differences persist between the world’s two biggest powers on Iran and Taiwan. “I will make a determination,” Trump said, adding: “I’ll be making decisions. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right
TAIWAN ISSUE: US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on the first day of meetings that ‘it wouldn’t be a US-China summit without the Taiwan issue coming up’ There were no surprises on the first day of the summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday, as the government reiterated that cross-strait stability is crucial to the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the world. As the two presidents met for a highly anticipated summit yesterday, Chinese state media reported that Xi warned Trump that missteps regarding Taiwan could push their two countries into “conflict.” Trump arrived in China with accolades for his host, calling Xi a “great leader” and “friend,” and extending an invitation to visit the White House
SECURITY: Taipei presses the US for arms supplies, saying the arms sales are not only a reflection of the US security commitment to Taiwan but also serve as a mutual deterrent against regional threats Taiwan is committed to preserving the cross-strait “status quo” and contributing to regional peace and stability, the Presidential Office said yesterday. “It is an undeniable fact that the Republic of China is a sovereign and independent democratic nation,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) reiterated, adding that Beijing has no right to claim sovereignty over Taiwan. The statements came after US President Donald Trump warned against Taiwanese independence. Trump wrapped up a state visit to Beijing on Friday, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had pressed him not to support Taiwan. Taiwan depends heavily on US security backing to deter China from carrying
RSS