A draft law on the promotion of a nuclear-free homeland began its review at the legislature yesterday, but Atomic Energy Council Minister Tsai Chuen-horng (蔡春鴻) said the nation would not be able to achieve this goal by 2025 and the Ministry of Economic Affairs said the nation might suffer a power shortage.
The draft act, which aims to create a nuclear-free homeland by 2025, was first proposed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in 2005 and only made it to a legislative review after eight years.
However, it was not smooth sailing for the bill at the joint meeting of the education and economic committees yesterday. The first hour was spent by lawmakers arguing whether civilians should be allowed to participate or speak during the review process.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers said that since a legislative review was not a public hearing, having civilians presents would cause stress to the legislators. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君), convener of yesterday’s meeting, countered that their participation was protected by the Constitution.
DPP Legislator Pan Men-an (潘孟安) said the Basic Environment Act (環境基本法) clearly stipulates that the government must act to achieve a nuclear-free homeland, so the proposed law is an effort to make sure that the government will abide by the law.
While legislators from both parties expressed their support for the goal, Tsai said the nation would not be able to reach this goal by 2025, while ensuring rational electricity rates, a stable power supply and lowering carbon emissions.
As the three operational nuclear power plants are scheduled for retirement before 2025, some of the legislators’ concerns were focused on the new Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮)
“Most of the parts of the first reactor at the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant have been completed and are undergoing testing, but the plant has not reached safety standards required for operation,” Tsai said.
Deputy Minister of Economic Affairs Woody Duh (杜紫軍) said if the plant is not operational by the time the three other power plants retire, the nation is likely to face a power shortage and higher electricity rates.
Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) chairman Hwang Jung-chiou (黃重球) said the use of nuclear power was a major issue linked to national energy safety and the stability of power supply, and needed more time for discussion.
“Civic anti-nuclear groups have worked harder than Taipower, the council and the ministry in communicating with the public on nuclear issues ... and with the media reports about the problems at the nuclear power plants, the public cannot feel safe and confident about these government agencies,” KMT Legislator Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順) said.
She said those agencies should also be responsible for explaining to the public what other options and methods the nation has if nuclear power is phased out, instead of only talking about a potential power shortage or higher electricity rates.
Cheng said government agencies should stop threatening the public with a power shortage. She said that while Duh has said there may be a power shortage if the nation’s power reserve capacity drops below 7 percent, statistics show that the power reserve capacity has always stayed above 20 percent since 2008 — higher than the minimum capacity of 15 percent regulated by law, and even hitting a high of 28.11 percent in 2009.
Green Citizen Action’s Alliance secretary-general Tsuei Su-hsin (崔愫欣) said with all the problems already found at the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, the supplementary budget added to the construction should be saved to invest in other sustainable energy resources.
Tsuei added that she hoped the government could keep its promise of not postponing the dates for retiring the old nuclear power plants, as well as coming up with a clear timetable for achieving a nuclear-free homeland.
FAST TRACK? Chinese spouses must renounce their Chinese citizenship and pledge allegiance to Taiwan to gain citizenship, some demonstrators said Opponents and supporters of a bill that would allow Chinese spouses to obtain Taiwanese citizenship in four years instead of six staged protests near the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning. Those who oppose the bill proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) demanded that Chinese spouses be granted citizenship only after renouncing their Chinese citizenship, passing a citizenship test and pledging allegiance to Taiwan. The demonstrators, who were protesting at a side entrance to the Legislative Yuan on Jinan Road, were mostly members of the Taiwan Association of University Professors and other organizations advocating Taiwanese independence. Supporters of the bill, led
SILENT MAJORITY: Only 1 percent of Chinese rejected all options but war to annex Taiwan, while one-third viewed war as unacceptable, a university study showed Many Chinese are more concerned with developments inside their country than with seeking unification with Taiwan, al-Jazeera reported on Friday. Although China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to annex it, by force if necessary, 23-year-old Chinese Shao Hongtian was quoted by al-Jazeera as saying that “hostilities are not the way to bring China and Taiwan together.” “I want unification to happen peacefully,” Shao said. Al-Jazeera said it changed Shao’s name to respect his wish for anonymity. If peaceful unification is not possible, Shao said he would prefer “things to remain as they are,” adding that many of his friends feel
Taiwan has “absolute air superiority” over China in its own airspace, Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on Monday, amid concern over whether Taipei could defend itself against a military incursion by Beijing. Po made the remarks in response to a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) on whether Taiwan would have partial or complete air superiority if Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes were to enter Taiwan’s airspace. Po, a retired pilot, said that the Taiwanese military has “absolute air superiority” over PLA
A shipment of basil pesto imported by Costco Wholesale Taiwan from the US in the middle of last month was intercepted at the border after testing positive for excessive pesticide residue, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. Samples taken from a shipment of the Kirkland Signature brand of basil pesto imported by Costco contained 0.1 milligrams per kilogram of ethylene oxide, exceeding the non-detectable limit. Ethylene oxide is a carcinogenic substance that can be used as a pesticide. The 674kg shipment of basil pesto would either be destroyed or returned to its country of origin, as is the procedure for all