Facing growing pressure over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (
The review committee will be composed of up to 30 members, Lin said yesterday at the Legislative Yuan.
It is to be comprised of specialists from a diverse range of backgrounds he said, from within academic circles, and political figures from institutions such as the Atomic Energy Council (AEC, 原子能委員會), the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA, 環保署) and the Ministry of Economic Affairs' (MOEA) Energy Commission (能源會).
Lin said that the final report would be available by the end of September and that his conclusion would be deferred until discussion of the issue with experts is completed.
The advisors will be drawn from both pro-nuclear and anti-nuclear camps, but although they may offer their opinions, no vote will be held on the matter, Lin said.
If the project continues, according to a recent report by Taiwan Power Corp (Taipower,
Fighting anti-nuclear activists, Taipower earlier stated that the 31.32 percent of construction completed to date had already exhausted some NT$44 billion in funds.
Halting the project will result in a financial loss of at least NT$84.6 billion, the company said.
Lin stressed, however, that committee members would reassess the total cost of the plant, including construction and maintenance costs, remedying possible negative environmental impact, managing retired equipment and treating radioactive waste.
The ongoing controversy over the plant was highlighted yesterday when new Cabinet members assumed office. When chairman of the AEC, Hsia Der-yu (夏德鈺), presented his first report to the Legislative Yuan's Sci-tech and Information Committee (科技委員會) yesterday morning, more than 30 legislators were ready armed with questions.
"If your professional training tells you that nuclear power plants are safe, will you ask DPP chairman Lin I-hsiung (
Lee said that Hsia -- also a KMT member -- should not sacrifice his professional responsibility to get into bed with the DPP
Hsia holds a PhD in nuclear engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US, and has been an active professional in the field of nuclear energy for three decades.
Hsia said that he could convince DPP officials of the plant's safety and would communicate with anti-nuclear activists within a month to eliminate their skepticism.
As new head of the EPA, Lin Jun-yi's (
Lin said that he personally disagreed with the adoption of nuclear energy, based on reports of the high incidence of cancer caused by improper radiation containment.
Lin told the media last week that he may order the plant to undergo another environmental impact assessment (EIA).
He said two censures from the Control Yuan regarding improper EIA's conducted by the AEC in the past warranted a fresh assessment.
Legislator took aim at Hsia over what they said was his failure to tackle recent nuclear incidents, including nuclear waste spills and reported cases of radiation-contaminated roads, schools and buildings in several communities.
"Even advanced countries such as the US face enormous problems in properly handling radioactive waste," said DPP lawmaker Lai Chin-lin (
Hsia said that Taipower was conducting a geological survey in Wuchiou (
However, Hsia could not confirm when approximately 97,000 barrels of nuclear waste temporarily stored on Orchid Island (
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
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The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said that it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Ragasa this morning and a land warning at night as it approached Taiwan. Ragasa intensified from a tropical storm into a typhoon at 8am yesterday, the CWA said, adding that at 2pm, it was about 1,110km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip. The typhoon was moving northwest at 13kph, with sustained winds of up to 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA Web site showed. Forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said that Ragasa was projected to strengthen as it neared the Bashi Channel, with its 200km