The government may have to deal with more water shortages as Taiwan’s climate has become “bipolar,” academics said yesterday.
Chou Chia (周佳), a research fellow at Academia Sinica, said that as global warming alters climate patterns, people can expect more rain in the rainy season and less during the dry season.
“In the areas of Asia affected by the monsoon, which include Taiwan, the weather has become bipolar,” Chou said. “The phenomenon has become more obvious in central and southern parts of the country, including Yunlin, Chiayi and Tainan counties.”
The news came two days after the Water Resources Agency announced a plan to further restrict water usage at swimming pools and other locations in central Taiwan if the water situation does not improve by the end of next month.
Chou said annual rainfall had not changed much in the past 30 years, with the nation receiving an average of 2,600mm. However, the distribution of rainfall was uneven. While severe rainfall led to floods in some areas, others were hit by drought.
Rainfall intensity is estimated to increase about 15 percent in the rainy season by the end of the century, but the chances of droughts were also higher, he said. The Greater Kaohsiung area, for example, would not have received even half the normal annual rainfall for 2009 had it not been for the torrential rain brought by Typhoon Morakot.
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
ENHANCING DETERRENCE: Stationing the missiles in Kyushu would allow Japan to cover waters near Taiwan and China’s coastal areas without any logistical difficulties Japan is to deploy extended-range anti-ship missiles at a Ground Self-Defense Force base in Kumamoto to bolster its defenses, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported on Saturday. The upgraded Type 12 surface-to-ship missile, with a range of more than 1,000km, would be capable of striking targets in the Taiwan Strait and along China’s coast. Originally limited to a few hundred kilometers, the Type 12 was recently modernized ahead of schedule. Deployment, initially slated for next year, has been accelerated after the upgrade was completed sooner than expected, the newspaper said. Stationing the missiles in Kyushu would allow Japan to cover waters near Taiwan and
The presence of Taiwanese politicians at China’s military parade tomorrow would send the wrong message to Beijing and the international community about Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy, a national security official said yesterday. China is to hold the parade tomorrow to mark the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. By bringing together leaders of “anti-West” governments such as Russia, North Korea, Iran and Belarus, the parade aims to project a symbolic image of an alliance that is cohesive and unbending against Western countries, the national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu
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