Representatives from environmental groups and local residents yesterday gathered in front of Taipei City Hall to present a petition saying that all the buildings on a plot of land purchased by the Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation within an environmental conservation area in the city’s Neihu District (內湖) are illegal, a view that the city government said had some validity.
The Tzu Chi Foundation purchased a plot of land on the district’s Chengkong Road Sec 5, across from Dahu Park (大湖公園), and applied to the city government in 1997 to change the land’s status from a environmental conservation area to one that could be used for the construction of a 4.6 hectare “social welfare park.”
The foundation’s plans led to opposition from environmentalists and local residents over concerns that the fragile geological features of the site may not be appropriate for a large-scale development, possible water drainage problems and over fears that the case would become a bad example of giving over environmental conservation areas to development.
Photo: Chen Wei-tzu, Taipei Times
Shouting: “The city government should stop covering up for Tzu Chi, and Tzu Chi should stop its illegal practices,” the protesters urged the city government to admit that the buildings on the land are illegal constructions, and to put a stop to the foundation’s efforts to legalize them or to expand the development.
Neihu Environmental Conservation Area Protection Association chairperson Lee Jih-Ching (李日進) said that according to the city government’s land use regulations for environmental conservation areas, developments larger than 5,000m2 need to go through urban planning and renewal procedures, and construction of buildings more than 200m2 require approval from the city’s urban planning committee, but the foundation did not fulfill either of these requirements.
Pan Han-shen (潘翰聲) of Green Party Taiwan, said the city government should not neglect the fact that the existing buildings in the area are illegal and should take action accordingly.
Receiving the petition from the groups’ representatives, Construction Management Office deputy director Chen Huang-cheng (陳煌城) said: “According to our records, there are indeed illegal constructions in the area, but operations to tear them down are on hold.”
The city government passed an administrative order some years ago that allowed illegal constructions built before 1994 to be exempted from being torn down, Chen said, adding that the office would check whether there are new illegal constructions in the area within the next two weeks.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
Three tropical depressions yesterday intensified into tropical storms, with one likely to affect Taiwan as a typhoon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The three storms, named Mitag, Ragasa and Neoguri, were designated as storms No. 17 to 19 for this year, the CWA said. Projected routes indicate that Ragasa is most likely to affect Taiwan, it said. As of 2am today, Ragasa was 1,370km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) on the southernmost tip of Taiwan. It was moving west-northwest before turning northwest, slowing from 11kph to 6kph, the agency said. A sea warning for Ragasa is unlikely before Sunday afternoon, but its outer rim