The Environmental Protection Administration said yesterday that Taiwan has received NT$61.3 million in compensation for the cleanup of an oil spill, caused last year by the Greek-registered MV Amorgos. The payment marks the first time the nation has received compensation for marine pollution.
The compensation is for the cleanup only and does not include damages or lawyers' fees.
"The real battle has just begun. We will continue to demand around NT$900 million in compensation [for damages] from the insurance company," said EPA administrator Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) at a press conference yesterday.
"We have no doubt that the polluters will pay the price," Hau said.
Yesterday's sum was the result of long-term negotiations between Taiwan and the ship's insurance company, the Assuranceforeningen Gard-Gjensidig.
The EPA's estimate of the money spent on cleaning up the spill -- based on reports from different agencies, including the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, the Council of Agriculture, the Construction and Planning Administration and the Pingtung County Government -- came to about NT$93 million.
Coordinated by the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Ltd (
The EPA said the difference in the compensation paid and the EPA's original estimate could be attributed to differing views between the two parties over unit prices for various aspects of the clean up.
Hau said that seeking compensation for damages would be more challenging than for the cleanup because the losses are more difficult to estimate. Hau said he hopes to receive the compensation by the end of this year.
"I have to say that money cannot make up for damaged environment," Hau said, adding that if no conclusion is made by this year, Taiwan might file a lawsuit in Norway, where the insurance company is registered.
As for losses to the fishing industry, EPA officials said that the Pingtung District Fishermen's Association had decided to seek compensation on its own and not through governmental channels.
On Jan. 14 last year, the MV Amorgos, on its way from Indonesia to China, ran aground near Kenting National Park in Pingtung County due to bad weather. Four days later, 1,150 tonnes of fuel oil remaining on the ship began to spill and contaminated 6,987m2 of the coastal area within the Lungkeng Ecological Conservation Preservation Area.
The wreck of the Amorgos is still at the bottom of waters off Kenting. The original wreck-removal plan was deemed unfeasible after it broke up and sank after typhoons last summer.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications has not yet decided as to whether a new wreck-removal plan should be pursued.
Ministry officials said that the remains pose no environmental risk, because the ship's fuel oil and cargo of iron ore have already been removed.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS