A proposed mining project in Yilan County met with strong opposition at an environmental review yesterday, because of its potential impact on a rare endemic plant and discrepancies in the company’s scope of mining activities.
Wanta Mining Co has proposed estabishing a mining complex on a 12-hectare plot on Dabai Mountain (大白山) in the county’s Nanao Township (南澳). However, the target site is adjacent to a grove of Taiwanese beech trees (Fagus hayatae), a species endemic to Taiwan that falls under the Forestry Bureau’s classification of rare and valuable plants.
An ice age relict, the Taiwanese beech is usually found in higher mountain areas. The trees near the proposed mining site — at an altitude of 1,100m to 1,300m — are the lowest-known site of the plant.
During the review yesterday, Citizen of the Earth activists said the mining project could have a severe impact on the rare trees and other protected species in the area, such as the Formosan Reeve’s muntjac, Formosan rock monkey, Swinhoe’s pheasant and civet.
The area might also be designated a natural preserve for Taiwanese beech trees in the future, activists said.
Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association lawyer Hsieh Meng-yu (謝孟羽) questioned whether Wanta had obtained the appropriate license for its mining activities in the area.
Hsieh said the company originally applied for the right to extract crystals, but now includes silica sand in its plans.
Silica sand excavation requires a special license and approval following the amendment of the Mining Act (礦業法) in 2003.
“More than 80 percent of the materials that Wanta proposes mining is silica sand, with crystals accounting for only about 2 percent. We suspect that the company is trying to mine silica sand by using a false license,” Hsieh said.
“If the company really wants to mine silica sand, it can dig river sand instead and leave the mountain alone,” he said.
The Environmental Protection Administration’s environmental impact assessment committee concluded the meeting by ordering the company to assess the necessity and possibility of downsizing its mining scope — by as much as 23 percent — and conduct a study into the ecological impact on Taiwanese beech trees within a radius of 500m from the mining site.
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