Hsinchu County Commissioner Chiu Ching-chun (邱鏡淳) joined Sinpu Township (新埔) officials and scores of local residents at a rally yesterday to protest against pollution of the township’s water source. The protesters said a central government policy allows the industrial pollution of a river that supplies water to Sinpu for drinking and irrigation purposes.
Following the protest, Chiu, Sinpu Township Mayor Lai Chiang-hai (賴江海) and Sinpu Council Speaker Wang Tseng-chi (王增基) headed for Taipei, where they said they would petition the legislature and Control Yuan to “return justice to the local residents.”
The dispute revolves around two high-tech manufacturing companies that have for many years released industrial wastewater into Siaoli River (霄裡溪) in Sinpu, which is a catchment area.
At the rally in front of the Hsinchu County Government building, protesters wore headbands that read “Refuse to Drink Toxic Water” and shouted slogans, pledging their determination to stop Chunghwa Picture Tubes and AU Optronics Corp (AUO) from polluting their drinking water source.
On Monday, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Minister Stephen Shen (沈世宏) told lawmakers that if AUO could not find another wastewater disposal location by the end of the month, its plants would be shut down. However, Chiu said his administration on Tuesday received an official notice from the EPA declaring that the Siaoli River would no longer serve as a source of drinking water.
Instead of drawing water from the river, the EPA notice said, Hsinchu County residents should go upstream to where Siaoli and Fongshan rivers (鳳山溪) merge. The central government claimed its policy took into consideration “the needs of both the local community and industry,” Chiu said, citing the notice.
Chiu accused the central government of “legalizing a controversial measure” by permitting the two companies to keep polluting the Siaoli River, damaging the health of local residents and imposing on the right of farmers to irrigate their crops with clean water. Wang said some local farmers have complained that consumers have had doubts about crop safety since learning that the water in Siaoli River is being used for irrigation.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hsu Hsin-ying (徐欣瑩), who represents an electoral district in the county, accused the EPA of “helping [industries] to play foul.”
In response, Shen said the EPA was acting “in accordance with the law,” since Siaoli River has not been designated as a source of drinking water after several rounds of environmental impact assessment meetings.
Shen added, however, that he would continue urging the two companies to reduce the volume of pollutants they discharge into the river.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS