The Homemakers United Foundation yesterday urged the government to enforce stricter radiation inspections on imported food.
The group issued the call following the confirmation by Tokyo Electric Power Co, operator of Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, that 300 tonnes of radiation-contaminated water from a steel tank had leaked into groundwater and possibly into the sea.
Foundation president Chen Man-li (陳曼麗) said radiation leakage from Fukushima has contaminated the seawater and nearby soil, and while many Taiwanese like to eat seafood, the government has not taken any precautions against the importation of possible contaminated food from Japan.
Photo: CNA
“It’s been two years since the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear disaster, but the total number of samples [of food products imported from Japan tested for radiation levels] is only 40,000, while Hong Kong’s authorities have already tested more than 150,000 samples,” she said, adding that both South Korea and Hong Kong immediately release their reports on contaminated food to the public.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬) said that government statistics showed that the number of food samples tested during a week in Taiwan (202 from Aug. 19 to Aug. 25 this year) is fewer than the number tested during one day in Hong Kong (299 between 12am Aug. 19 and 12am on Aug. 20), and that the permitted level in Taiwan was even raised last year.
Chiang Shou-shan (江守山), a nephrologist at Shin-Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, suggested that the public avoid eating migrating fishes, such as tuna, flounder and greenling, because they may have higher levels of radiation accumulated in their bodies.
Although some forms of radiation can be blocked by wearing an aluminum or radiation protection suit, our stomachs remain unprotected, he said, adding that radioactive substances in food may continue to damage the body for a long time after consumption.
Meanwhile, in related developments, the DPP, noting the state-run Taiwan Power Co’s (Taipower) refusal to arrange former Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan’s visit to the No. 1 reactor at the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in Wanli District (萬里), New Taipei City (新北市), because of Kan’s anti-nuclear position, said yesterday that Taipower seemed to be implying that only those who supported nuclear energy would be welcome to visit power plants.
“The refusal highlighted Taipower’s pro-nuclear position and its violation of diplomatic protocol,” DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said.
The President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) administration and Taipower have both violated Article 23 of the Basic Environment Act (環境基本法), which stipulates that the government must make plans to gradually achieve the goal of becoming a nuclear-free country, Lin said.
Kan is slated to visit Taiwan from Sept. 12 to Sept. 15 for a series of events to express his opposition to nuclear power.
Additional reporting by Chris Wang and CNA
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
Greenpeace yesterday said that it is to appeal a decision last month by the Taipei High Administrative Court to dismiss its 2021 lawsuit against the Ministry of Economic Affairs over “loose” regulations governing major corporate electricity consumers. The climate-related lawsuit — the first of its kind in Taiwan — sought to require the government to enforce higher green energy thresholds on major corporations to reduce emissions in light of climate change and an uptick in extreme weather. The suit, filed by Greenpeace East Asia, the Environmental Jurists Association and four individual plaintiffs, was dismissed on May 8 following four years of litigation. The
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their