Participants attending a public hearing yesterday on nuclear safety and emergency response measures remained concerned as they expressed doubts about the government’s contingency plans in the event of a crisis.
Saying that the ongoing nuclear crisis in Fukushima, Japan, is an important turning point in the nuclear policies of many countries, former Environmental Protection Administration minister Lin Jun-yi (林俊義) said Germany has begun to re-evaluate its nuclear energy policy, while Taiwan’s government wants to continue developing nuclear power.
“The safety of 23 million -Taiwanese should not be decided by technological bureaucracy,” Lin said at the hearing hosted by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇), environmental groups and government agencies.
As all man-made constructions have their own risks and cannot be absolutely safe, the government shouldn’t keep promising that they are safe, he said.
According to the Atomic Energy Council, the council has asked state-owned Taiwan Power Co (-Taipower) to re-evaluate the possible effects an earthquake would have on the nation’s three operating nuclear power plants. The council has also demanded that Taipower upgrade the seismic design -guidelines of the Jinshan Nuclear Power Plant from 0.3g to 0.4g, to improve its resistance to earthquakes.
Shih Shin-min (施信民), a professor of chemical engineering at National Taiwan University, asked whether the government had a practical emergency response protocol at hand, and whether a 5km radius evacuation area was enough.
“If there aren’t practical and effective plans, then the power plants should be retired,” he said.
In response, a Taipower official said the company is only in charge of the operation of the nuclear plants and executing the energy policies of the superior ministry, and therefore could not decide whether nuclear power should be scrapped.
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
Fast food chain McDonald's is to raise prices by up to NT$5 on some products at its restaurants across Taiwan, starting on Wednesday next week, the company announced today. The prices of all extra value meals and sharing boxes are to increase by NT$5, while breakfast combos and creamy corn soup would go up by NT$3, the company said in a statement. The price of the main items of those meals, if ordered individually, would remain the same. Meanwhile, the price of a medium-sized lemon iced tea and hot cappuccino would rise by NT$3, extra dipping sauces for chicken nuggets would go up
Yangmingshan National Park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) nature area has gone viral after a park livestream camera observed a couple in the throes of intimate congress, which was broadcast live on YouTube, drawing large late-night crowds and sparking a backlash over noise, bright lights and disruption to wildlife habitat. The area’s livestream footage appeared to show a couple engaging in sexual activity on a picnic table in the park on Friday last week, with the uncensored footage streamed publicly online. The footage quickly spread across social media, prompting a tide of visitors to travel to the site to “check in” and recreate the
Minister of Digital Affairs Lin Yi-ching (林宜敬) yesterday cited regulatory issues and national security concerns as an expert said that Taiwan is among the few Asian regions without Starlink. Lin made the remarks on Facebook after funP Innovation Group chief executive officer Nathan Chiu (邱繼弘) on Friday said Taiwan and four other countries in Asia — China, North Korea, Afghanistan and Syria — have no access to Starlink. Starlink has become available in 166 countries worldwide, including Ukraine, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the six years since it became commercial, he said. While China and North Korea block Starlink, Syria is not
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