The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) celebrated its 20th anniversary yesterday, and received a "tumor cake" as a gift from environmental protection groups keen to highlight what they see as the deterioration of the nation's environment.
The cake was made using polluted duck eggs, rice and oysters, which were then mixed with mud from the Central Cross-Island Highway (中橫公路). The oil used to blend the ingredients contained polychlorinated biphenyls.
Meanwhile, 20 candles were placed on top of the "cake." Each representing a controversial development, such as the Formosa Plastics Corp steel plant, the CPC Corp, Taiwan petrochemical plant and the planned Suhua Freeway (蘇花高速公路).
PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
Environmentalists said that like the candles, the pollution these projects would generate would spread like a tumor does in the body.
About 20 activists gathered in front of the EPA building yesterday morning to present the cake to administration officials, but no official came out to accept it.
Green Party Taiwan Secretary-General Pan Han-shen (潘翰聲) said the EPA has degenerated from a guardian of the environment into an endorser of all development projects.
"The Suhua Freeway project may soon be launched because the premier has said it will, [while] the Formosa petrochemical plant will not be penalized for overuse of water on President Chen's [Shui-bian (陳水扁)] instructions," he said.
Pan said if the environmental impact review committee granted approval to all these projects, the nation's carbon dioxide emissions would increase by 40 percent.
Secretary-General of the Green Consumers' Foundation Jay Fang (方儉) said that late premier Yu Kuo-hua (俞國華) had once said "protecting the environment is superior to developing the economy."
Fang also said 20 years ago the press was allowed to attend all EPA events, except for major bid cases, but now the press has only restricted access to information from the agency.
"This shows that the administration is trying to control what information is disseminated and likes to work things out behind closed doors," he said.
Chairman of the Environmental Quality Protection Foundation Liou Ming-long (劉銘龍) said the foundation had applied to stage a "memorial service" on Chunghwa Rd, Taipei City, for all those who have died because of pollution.
"The EPA, like a reversing high speed train, is moving backwards," he said.
In response, EPA Deputy Director Chang Tzi-chin (張子敬) said the accusations regarding the projects being railroaded through were pure speculation. He said the environmental review impact committee had not yet reviewed any of the cases mentioned and that press participation at the meetings was the same as last year.
Chang said the administration would continue to communicate with environmentalists about their concerns.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or