The Executive Yuan on Wednesday designated about 2,500 hectares of farmland no longer suitable for agriculture in central and southern Taiwan as sites for the construction of solar power facilities to develop renewable energy.
The act gave the nation’s solar power industry the green light to build facilities in Yunlin, Chiayi and Changhua counties, where large amounts of farmland have turned fallow due to ground subsidence.
Severe ground subsidence caused by excessive groundwater extraction led to 1,253 hectares of farmland in Yunlin, Chiayi and Changhua to be designated as unsuitable for agriculture.
A corridor spanning 1,266 hectares surrounding the high-speed rail line in Changhua and Yunlin was also on the Executive Yuan’s list, as ground subsidence related to train operations has greatly affected the area.
The designation was made after Premier Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國) heard an interministerial report by the National Development Council, the Council of Agriculture and the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Saying that upholding “the principle of agricultural land solely for agricultural use” remains the government’s top priority, the Executive Yuan expressed its worry that quality farmland might be used for solar power should too many regions be designated for energy development, as generating electricity is generally more profitable than growing crops.
As the 2,519 hectares are undoubtedly unsuitable for farming, reutilizing that land for solar energy will not spark opposition, it said.
The government is to survey whether more farmland could be used to generate electricity, especially severely polluted fields.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS