A total of 1.52 million recycled plastic bottles used to build a pavilion at the Taipei International Flora Expo will be taken apart and sent to elementary schools nationwide to raise environmental awareness, the building’s sponsor said yesterday.
The Far Eastern Group, commissioned by the Taipei City Government to build the EcoARK — a boat-shaped exhibition hall made of PET bottles — said it would work with the Ministry of Education to distribute the bottles to 100 elementary schools for “green use.”
Schools that were damaged by Typhoon Morakot in 2009 will be given priority, group chairman Douglas Hsu (徐旭東) said.
He said all the honeycomb-shaped PET bricks used to build the EcoARK will be reused in creative projects so local communities can join in on the environmentally friendly action.
For instance, he said, the bricks can be reassembled into bus stops, greenhouses, galleries or even sheds for keeping livestock.
“Since the bottles were collected from the public, we think it is best that the materials go back into the hands of the people,” Hsu said.
The group said the inspiration for EcoARK came from the large number of PET bottles recycled in Taiwan every year — about 90,000 tonnes.
EcoARK, also known as the Pavilion of New Fashion, attracted more than 2 million visitors at the expo. It was featured on the National Geographic Channel’s Megastructures, which was aired in 168 countries in 34 languages, with an estimated audience of 370 million.
The US House of Representatives yesterday passed the PROTECT Taiwan Act, which stipulates that Washington would exclude China from participating in major global financial organizations if its actions directly threaten Taiwan’s security. The bill, proposed by Republican US Representative Frank Lucas, passed with 395 votes in favor and two against. It stipulates that if China’s actions pose any threat to Taiwan’s security, economic or social systems, the US would, “to the maximum extent practicable,” exclude China from international financial institutions, including the G20, the Bank for International Settlements and the Financial Stability Board. The bill makes it clear that China
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Garbage and recycling schedules are to vary from Saturday through Sunday next week over the Lunar New Year holiday period. The following collection information is from the governments of the six special municipalities. Taipei Regular service: Sunday to Monday next week. No service: Tuesday to Thursday next week. Extra service: Friday next week. Regular service resumes: Saturday next week. New Taipei City Extra service: Sunday. Adjusted collection time: Monday next week — garbage collection is to begin in the morning and end at 6pm. No service: Tuesday to Thursday next week. Regular service resumes: Friday next week. Note: Garbage can be dropped off at 70
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