The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) recently conducted measurements of indoor electromagnetic fields in Taipei for the first time, with results indicating that 20 percent of the locations tested had readings of over 10 milligauss (mG).
High readings have been linked to certain health problems.
"That high?" gasped Li Chung-yi (
Li called on the administration to publicize the high-risk locations as soon as possible so that any inappropriate power distribution in schools and hospitals could be adjusted.
Chen Chiao-hua (陳椒華), director of the Taiwan Environmental Protection Union (TEPU), said that if Taipei, the country's capital, was flooded with excessive electromagnetic radiation in this way, then other cities and counties may pay even less attention to their power distribution infrastructure, making it possible that the danger was even greater outside Taipei.
Chen added that although the WHO had yet to publish a report on the effects of electromagnetic radiation, research on infectious diseases shows that small children regularly exposed to 4mG of electromagnetic radiation had an increased risk of developing leukemia, and that for every 1mG above that level, the risk of developing cancer doubles.
From late March to early last month, the administration took electromagnetic radiation readings in Taipei, the country's most densely populated area, hoping to obtain indoor background radiation measures to use as a reference when amending standards.
The EPA conducted tests in all of the city's 12 administrative districts, measuring electromagnetic levels in two hospitals, two communities, two elementary schools and two kindergartens per district. In total, 16 locations were tested and more than 6,000 measurements were taken in each district.
The study showed that 18 percent of elementary school classrooms, hospitals and homes had levels exceeding 10mG. One percent of kindergartens had readings above 10mG, while 16 percent of power distribution rooms and 34 percent of transformer rooms in communities, schools and hospitals had levels above 10mG. Thirty-two percent of areas near high-voltage wires measured above 10mG.
Four percent of power distribution rooms, 11 percent of transformer rooms, and 3 percent of elementary school classrooms, hospitals, homes and areas near high-voltage lines had readings exceeding 30mG.
The EPA said there was no way to verify at present if electromagnetic radiation was harmful to people's health, and added that it was concerned it might cause unfounded worries among the public.
The EPA was therefore unwilling to release the sampling locations and measurements from its tests, and has no plans to continue sampling in other cities or counties.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
Taiwan is awaiting official notification from the US regarding the status of the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) after the US Supreme Court ruled US President Donald Trump's global tariffs unconstitutional. Speaking to reporters before a legislative hearing today, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said that Taiwan's negotiation team remains focused on ensuring that the bilateral trade deal remains intact despite the legal challenge to Trump's tariff policy. "The US has pledged to notify its trade partners once the subsequent administrative and legal processes are finalized, and that certainly includes Taiwan," Cho said when asked about opposition parties’ doubts that the ART was
If China chose to invade Taiwan tomorrow, it would only have to sever three undersea fiber-optic cable clusters to cause a data blackout, Jason Hsu (許毓仁), a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator, told a US security panel yesterday. In a Taiwan contingency, cable disruption would be one of the earliest preinvasion actions and the signal that escalation had begun, he said, adding that Taiwan’s current cable repair capabilities are insufficient. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) yesterday held a hearing on US-China Competition Under the Sea, with Hsu speaking on
RSS