Civic environmental group Citizens of the Earth, Taiwan (CET) yesterday said it suspects the motivation behind the Gaoping Great Lakes (高屏大湖) project might actually be real estate speculation, and urged the Environmental Protection Administration’s evaluation committee to reject the proposal tomorrow.
The Water Resources Agency’s Southern Region Water Resources Office plans to build five artificial lakes in a nearly 700-hectare area for cross-border water channeling and to save water in dry seasons, on the border of Pingtung County’s Ligang Township (里港) and Greater Kaohsiung’s Meinong District (美濃).
Although local farmers have protested against the project several times in previous years because it could destroy the area’s green soybean farms, an ad hoc Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) committee meeting in January proposed two options — allow the development of one lake first and then redo the assessments, or reject all development plans — for the EIA general assembly to decide.
The group yesterday said that according to data acquired from the Ministry of the Interior’s local branch, the government is planning to develop a new 4,349-hectare township near the project’s location and will reassign the farming zones into zones for recreation, housing and industrial use.
Holding a real estate flyer found near the project’s location that reads “Near the Gaoping Great Lakes, great location for land value increment,” CET researcher Frank Yang (楊俊朗) said the group suspects that the project’s true purpose is real-estate speculation, not solving water shortage problems in the area.
The land price stated on the flyer is about three times the average price three years ago, he added.
Yang said that although the first phase of the Gaoping Great Lakes’ project would reportedly save about 100,000 tonnes of water every day, the Water Resources Agency’s statistics showed that the tap water leakage rate in Greater Kaohsiung was 26 percent — or about 470,000 tonnes of water each day — in 2011.
“It is absurd that the government is choosing to spend NT$12 billion to develop the Gaoping Great Lakes project and save 100,000 tonnes of water each day, when data from the tap water department shows that 158,000 tonnes of water can be saved by spending NT$5.5 billion in improving water leakage problems,” he said.
The group urged the EIA general assembly to reject the project tomorrow, and suggested the government publicize the names of officials involved in the new township development plans, as well as further investigate the case.
Aftershocks from a magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck off Yilan County at 3:45pm yesterday could reach a magnitude of 5 to 5.5, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Seismological Center technical officer Chiu Chun-ta (邱俊達) told a news conference that the epicenter of the temblor was more than 100km from Taiwan. Although predicted to measure between magnitude 5 and 5.5, the aftershocks would reach an intensity of 1 on Taiwan’s 7-tier scale, which gauges the actual effect of an earthquake, he said. The earthquake lasted longer in Taipei because the city is in a basin, he said. The quake’s epicenter was about 128.9km east-southeast
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The New Taipei City Government today warned about the often-overlooked dangers of playing in water, and recommended safe swimming destinations to cool off from the summer heat. The following locations in the city as safe and fun for those looking to enjoy the water: Chienshuiwan (淺水灣), Baishawan (白沙灣), Jhongjiao Bay (中角灣), Fulong Beach Resort (福隆海水浴場) and Sansia District’s (三峽) Dabao River (大豹溪), New Taipei City Tourism and Travel Department Director-General Yang Tsung-min (楊宗珉) said. Outdoor bodies of water have variables outside of human control, such as changing currents, differing elevations and environmental hazards, all of which can lead to accidents, Yang said. Sudden
Tropical Storm Podul has formed over waters north-northeast of Guam and is expected to approach the seas southeast of Taiwan next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. The 11th Pacific storm of the year developed at 2am over waters about 2,660km east of Oluanpi (歐鑾鼻), Pingtung County — Taiwan's southernmost tip. It is projected to move westward and could have its most significant impact on Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday next week, the CWA said. The agency did not rule out the possibility of issuing a sea warning at that time. According to the CWA's latest update, Podul is drifting west-northwest
RSS