A large and controversial development project near scenic destination Cisingtan (七星潭) in Hualien came under protest as local residents and environmental organizations held a demonstration in front of the Environmental Protection Administration yesterday.
The protesters said that the 4.5 hectare development would destroy the area’s fragile ecosystem, remove their access to the beach and lacked community involvement.
They accused Hualien County Government officials of colluding with developers after they approved the proposal without conducting an environmental impact assessment. They added that officials should first finalize an overall development plan for the community.
The proposal, located on Haian Road next to Hualien Airport on the outskirts of Hualien City, includes the construction of a large vacation resort with a mix of commercial space.
Hualien County Government officials said the project would become part of a larger plan to develop the area, with land set aside for manufacturing and agricultural centers. They said the plan would help jump-start the county’s lagging economy, create jobs and increase tourism dollars.
Under county regulations, the proposal does not require an environmental impact assessment because the development area is less than 10 hectares.
In a public hearing after the protest, You Huang-ming (游煌明), who heads the Cisingtan Community Development Association, called both the proposal and the process “flawed.”
“We are not against development in general, but in this case, they haven’t shown any consideration for us local residents or our environment,” You said. “All that has [mattered] to the county government and the wealthy developers has been how to make [money].”
Local resident Tsai Chung-yueh (蔡中岳) said the proposal would harm the local culture and create large amounts of pollution — something the area’s small community could not accept.
“We want a clean and natural shoreline … that all residents can enjoy,” Tsai said. “This just isn’t a suitable location.”
Opposition to the project has grown in recent months after organizers said an online petition gathered more than 40,000 signatures.
The petition calls for county officials to reject the resort project and revise the entire Cisingtan area development proposal.
In response to the concerns, developer representative Huang Chin-fa (黃進發) apologized to the protesters for what he called “inadequate communication.”
“It is not our plan to destroy this beautiful environment,” Huang said.
He promised residents that the construction would not extend into the beach area, while the environmental exposure would be minimized. He said the company would attempt to source workers and supplies from neighboring communities.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) put Taiwan in danger, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said yesterday, hours after the de facto US embassy said that Beijing had misinterpreted World War II-era documents to isolate Taiwan. The AIT’s comments harmed the Republic of China’s (ROC) national interests and contradicted a part of the “six assurances” stipulating that the US would not change its official position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, Hsiao said. The “six assurances,” which were given by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, say that Washington would not set a date for ending arm sales to Taiwan, consult
A Taiwanese academic yesterday said that Chinese Ambassador to Denmark Wang Xuefeng (王雪峰) disrespected Denmark and Japan when he earlier this year allegedly asked Japan’s embassy to make Taiwan’s representatives leave an event in Copenhagen. The Danish-language Berlingske on Sunday reported the incident in an article with the headline “The emperor’s birthday ended in drama in Copenhagen: More conflict may be on the way between Denmark and China.” It said that on Feb. 26, the Japanese embassy in Denmark held an event for Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s birthday, with about 200 guests in attendance, including representatives from Taiwan. After addressing the Japanese hosts, Wang
RSS