Environmentalists from Taiwan and China met on the outlying island of Kinmen yesterday to discuss emergency preparedness for oil spills, as marine pollution emerges as a major issue following since the launch of direct shipping links across the Taiwan Strait.
The environmental seminar, held at the National Kinmen Institute of Technology, discussed response strategies for possible oil spill emergencies in the Taiwan Strait, one of the world’s busiest sea lanes.
Speaking at the opening session, Fu Kun-cheng (傅崑成), director of the university’s Ocean Affairs Research Center, said that ships plying the Taiwan Strait travel in a north-south direction and that the number of vessels on the route has increased steadily since the opening of direct cross-strait shipping links.
“Against this backdrop, the probability of marine accidents has increased and we are holding this seminar as the first step toward cross-strait cooperation in the field of environmental protection,” Fu said.
He said the seminar should spur the establishment of a cross-strait cooperative mechanism for oil-spill prevention and emergency response mechanisms.
Chen Hsien-heng (陳咸亨), director of the Environmental Protection Administration’s Water Quality Protection Bureau, said that five vessels were grounded in waters off Taiwan’s southwestern coast during Typhoon Morakot in early August.
“Fortunately, there were no serious oil spills from those ships, but this should serve as a warning. With an average of 1,000 ships now plying the Taiwan Strait each day, we should be better prepared to tackle oil spills and other emergencies,” Chen said.
The two-day seminar has brought together some 120 marine pollution experts and academics from Taiwan and China to exchange views and experiences in addressing oil spill issues.
The 40-member Chinese delegation is headed by Li Yi (李義), deputy chairman of the ship pollution commission under the Chinese Institute of Navigation.
Seventeen papers on oil slick legislation on both sides, notable oil spills, emergency response strategies and technologies, and possible cross-strait cooperation on oil spill response will be presented and discussed at the symposium.
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,
The Ministry of Culture yesterday officially launched the “We TAIWAN” cultural program on Osaka’s Nakanoshima sandbank, with the program’s mascot receiving overwhelming popularity. The cultural program, which runs from Aug. 2 to 20, was designed to partner with and capitalize on the 2025 World Expo that is being held in Osaka, Japan, from April 13 to Oct. 13, the ministry said. On the first day of the cultural program, its mascot, a green creature named “a-We,” proved to be extremely popular, as its merch was immediately in high demand. Long lines formed yesterday for the opening
The Taipei Summer Festival is to begin tomorrow at Dadaocheng Wharf (大稻埕), featuring four themed firework shows and five live music performances throughout the month, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said today. The festival in the city’s Datong District (大同) is to run until Aug. 30, holding firework displays on Wednesdays and the final Saturday of the event. The first show is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by Aug. 13, 20 and 30. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Disney Pixar's movie Toy Story, the festival has partnered with Walt Disney Co (Taiwan) to host a special themed area on
RSS