The DPP yesterday released an evaluation of the benefits of abandoning the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, arguing that adopting alternatives would benefit Taiwanese people in terms of economics, their health, the environment and sustainable development.
At a press conference held at the Legislative Yuan yesterday, DPP legislators claimed the new report refuted Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) and Atomic Energy Council (AEC) claims that using nuclear energy was the only solution to Taiwan's power shortage.
"Information included in our report can be considered as far more reliable than that which has been disseminated by agencies who support the development of nuclear power -- because they have never seriously considered adopting alternative energy sources," DPP legislator Lai Chin-lin (賴勁麟) said.
"The Ministry of Economic Affairs' (MOEA) soon-to-be-announced special team to review the project should take our report into account when conducting their work," Lai said.
Suggestions for alternative energy solutions presented in the report include: adopting liquefied natural gas, increasing energy efficiency in Taiwan, adjusting the structure of the industry, and lib-eralizing the power industry.
Co-authors of the 74-page document said that among other factors taken into account during their comprehensive analysis were the plant's economics, safety risks, environment impact, and possible legal complications.
"The cost of generating nuclear power is not as economically rosy as Taipower claims," said Wang To-far (王塗發), an economist from National Taipei University (台北大學). Wang illustrated his point by stating that 119 proposals to build nuclear power plants in the US had been canceled between 1972 and 1990, simply because the economics didn't work
Wang said that Taipower had underestimated the cost of total investment, using as evidence the fact that cost overruns on the second and third nuclear power plants ran at 2.8 and 2.5 times the initial estimated costs respectively.
"Don't forget that we still have to consider the plant's decommissioning cost and expenses involved in treating the radioactive waste it will generate. In addition, we need to take into account unseen costs the plant will bring about, such as from social disturbances and environmental deterioration," Wang said.
Public health experts said the AEC's data concerning the "safe dose" for humans exposed to ionizing radiation was out of date, and that it differed from the level updated by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) in 1990 by a factor of five.
"Speaking as a doctor, there is no safe threshold for exposure to low-dose radiation," said Wang Jung-der (
The five co-authors of the report have been included in the MOEA's project review task force. The Executive Yuan approved the list of 20 members yesterday.
"Anti-nuclear activists will form a minority within the group, but we hope the team's internal debates will be made available to the public," said Shih Shin-min (
Meanwhile, TEPU is arranging for several well-known US energy experts to visit the MOEA early in August, in a bid to highlight the advantages of adopting alternatives.
Armory Lovins an energy expert and co-CEO of the US-based Rocky Mountain Institute, has called for energy-efficient technology to tackle future demand since the 1970s, and is expected to share his inspirations on energy policy with the new government.
Other experts include Henry Kelly, director of the Federation of American Scientists, an organization founded in 1945 by members of the Manhattan Project who produced the first atomic bomb, to address the implications and dangers of the nuclear age.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would severely threaten the national security of the US, Japan, the Philippines and other nations, while global economic losses could reach US$10 trillion, National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) wrote in an article published yesterday in Foreign Affairs. “The future of Taiwan is not merely a regional concern; it is a test of whether the international order can withstand the pressure of authoritarian expansionism,” Lin wrote in the article titled “Taiwan’s Plan for Peace Through Strength — How Investments in Resilience Can Deter Beijing.” Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) intent to take Taiwan by force