Taiwan will closely monitor discussions at the 10th annual conference of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change being held in Buenos Aires, paying special attention to how the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol is applied to the country's competitors such as Japan and South Korea, environmental and economics officials said yesterday.
Environmental experts and government policy-makers from nearly 200 countries on Monday began discussing the future of the fight against global warming at the conference on climate change.
The annual UN-sponsored gathering is the last conference before the Feb. 16 implementation of the Kyoto Protocol, a landmark agreement requiring 30 of the world's developed nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2012.
Thousands of participants in the two-week meeting will be looking at new methods of limiting heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and developing strategies to persuade more nations to curb their greenhouse emissions.
"Strategies for further reduction of emissions will become clearer at the meeting. Taiwan has to know what kind of responsibility other newly-industrialized countries will shoulder after 2012," Lin Ta-hsiung (
A Taiwanese delegation will attend the conference, which draws to a close on Dec. 17, under the auspices of the EPA.
Senior officials from the EPA and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, including Lin and the Industrial Development Bureau's Deputy Director General Kuo Nien-hsiung (
Officials of the bureau's Sustainable Development Division told the Taipei Times yesterday that Taiwan has to be fully aware of strategies adopted by Japan, which has a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up to 6 percent of 1990 levels by 2012.
The approach Japan takes could point the way for Taiwan in boosting its economic competitiveness while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Bureau officials said that Taiwan will have to pay attention to discussions on the allocation of expertise and funds in newly industrialized countries, as well as countries with rapid economic growth, such as South Korea, China, India and Mexico.
They said that South Korea faces a bigger challenge than Taiwan, because it is ranked the world's ninth-largest producer of greenhouse gases, while Taiwan is ranked 22nd.
The officials said that Taiwan especially needs to learn more about how the Kyoto Protocol would apply to island countries, which are particularly vulnerable to extreme weather and rising sea levels.
Global warming has been blamed for more violent storms, rising sea levels and shrinking animal habitats.
Gloria Hsu (
"Waiting for solid research results on the local impact of climate change could take a long time. Adjusting industrial structures and encouraging energy conservation to avoid negative social and economic impacts are urgent," Hsu said.
Meanwhile, the availability of visas for some delegation members, including high-ranking officials, remains uncertain. Argentina's Trade and Cultural Office yesterday declined to respond to a query from the Taipei Times, saying that information about its issuance of visas is confidential.
Also see story:
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS