A Taichung power plant's excessive carbon emissions have put Taiwan in the international spotlight, the Taiwan Environmental Protection Union (TEPU) said on Wednesday, citing this month's issue of Nature magazine that said the Longjing Township (
The magazine used data provided by Carbon Monitoring for Action (CARMA), a database that lists carbon dioxide emissions for 50,000 power plants globally.
CARMA is funded by the Center for Global Development, a US nonprofit organization.
MAILIAO PLANT
"In addition to the Taichung power plant, southern Taiwan also has to put up with Mailiao's (
The Mailiao power plant was sixth in CARMA's carbon emission top 10, she said.
"With such high existing emission rates it is unthinkable that the government is still pushing for the construction of [CPC Corp, Taiwan's] Eighth Naphtha Cracker and [Formosa Plastic Group's] steel plant," she said.
"Although we are not part of the United Nations, such emissions will eventually draw international sanctions," she said. "It is time we started to contemplate how to live low-carbon lifestyles."
EPA RESPONSE
Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) Deputy Minister Chang Tzi-chin (
In response to the TEPU allegations, Taipower published a statement saying that instead of looking at the total emissions figure per single plant, emission intensity should be considered.
"Taiwan is a small place, therefore we need to utilize our space efficiently," the statement said. "The Taichung power plant is the largest in the world and provides 20 percent of the nation's electricity, so it emits a large amount of carbon."
"However, according to data published by CARMA, the plant in Taichung is doing well; it is emitting 0.92 kilograms of carbon dioxide per unit of electricity, much lower than the number for the rest of the nine power plants on the top-10 list," it said.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS