Scholars call for public hearings on environment

Environmental-science professors yesterday called for a range of considerations to be introduced into the management of water resources and land in the south, including public involvement, ecological preservation, environmental protection, and social and economic impact studies.

At an annual conference on sustainable development held by the National Science Council, the professors said that several controversial development projects, such as the Meinung Dam (美濃水庫) and the Pinnan Industrial Complex (濱南工業區), have sparked allegations of inappropriate land use and water-resource management in southern Taiwan.

Inspired by the controversies surrounding various development projects, the professors studied Kaohsiung City, Kaohsiung County and Pingtung County to review existing policies on water resources and land utilization.

For the past two years, environmental researchers have tried to document ecological conditions and develop alternative strategies for the government.

Lam San-pui (林新沛), an associate professor of public affairs at National Sun Yat-sen University, said yesterday that the government must pay attention to social-impact assessments, these are analyses of the possible impact of a course of action on the social aspects of the environment.

Lam said that the government should consider people's habits in relation to the economy, social systems and cultural values before initiating development projects.

"For example, the environmental impact assessment committee should include experts from a range of backgrounds -- including sociology, economics and cultural specialties," Lam said.

In addition, Lam said, more public hearings should be held before development projects are implemented in order to ensure effective public participation.

Meanwhile, Wu Jih-hwa (吳濟華), also an associate professor of public affairs at National Sun Yat-sen University, said that the government should adopt demand-side management strategies when making policy on water resources. Wu, who specializes in the relationship between land use, economic activity, urban development and water-resource management in the Kaoping River Basin (高屏溪流域), said that the price of each unit of water should be adjusted.

Wu called on the government and industry to develop coherent plans for industrial development.

"The proportion of industrial wastewater that gets recycled should be increased to 70 percent or 80 percent from the current 30 percent," Wu said.

Mao Guan-guay (毛冠貴), associate professor of rural planning and landscaping at the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, said that rivers in southern Taiwan have been narrowed by man-made river banks. Mao said that narrower waterways increase flow velocities, resulting in less water being absorbed into the earth.

Mao says he believes Pingtung County is no longer suitable for the development of aquaculture, saying that it was necessary to turn land used for aquaculture farms over to other uses, such as recreation, ecological restoration and environmental education.

Pingtung County has suffered from land "subsidence" caused by groundwater pumping by aquaculture farms in the past few decades. "Subsidence" is a category of ground failure that can take many forms, ranging from small or local collapses to a broad regional lowering of the earth's surface. For example, Mao said, the earth's surface in Chiatung (佳冬) township sank 3.12m between 1972 and 1999.