Authorities yesterday worked to clean up oil that might have been illegally dumped in waters near Green Island, Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) officials said.
Officials said they received reports about the oil spill near Green Island on Friday night and yesterday sent experts to the site.
The oil spread about 10km along Green Island’s north coast, Green Island Inspection Office chief Hsiao Su-ping (蕭肅平) said.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
The most heavily polluted waters stretched 600m from the island’s lighthouse in the northwest to Jhongliao Harbor (中寮港), Hsiao said, adding that the sea bed around the island was also affected by the oil.
The oil might have come from a cruise, cargo or other large ship, which might have dumped the oil in the open ocean, from where it washed ashore, Hsiao said.
Officials said they were using satellite images and ship tracking systems to try to identify the source of the spill.
Photo: Copy by Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
Experts were trying to assess the extent of the pollution and have not determined what effect it would have on the area’s marine life and ecology, or how long it would take to clean up.
The spill was first reported by the Chinese-language United Daily News after Green Island resident Yu Ming-hung (俞明宏) on Friday posted several photographs and a video on Facebook showing the sea bed and Green Island’s north coast coated with thick, black oil.
The oil on the sea bed looked like a “large python,” Yu said, adding that a “suspicious” vessel passed through the area on Friday morning and might have dumped the oil.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Liu Chao-hao (劉櫂豪), who represents Taitung County, said he has requested that the agency immediately clean up the oil spill and closely follow up on the incident to protect the environment.
The EPA has vowed to find and punish the perpetrator and has urged the public not to go near the polluted area during the cleanup period for their own safety and to prevent further environmental damage.
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS