The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) on Tuesday approved a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) on offshore wind energy development, in a major step toward developing renewable energy sources.
The government pledged to increase the ratio of renewable power generation to 20 percent of total electricity generation by 2025 to replace nuclear power, and wind power is expected to make up about 40 percent of renewable energy production.
To expedite wind energy development, the Bureau of Energy requires potential wind farm developers to acquire environmental approval by 2017, while an SEA on national wind energy development is needed as a basis for reviewing individual development projects.
The SEA review on Tuesday was aimed at establishing such a basis and clearing the path for commercial-scale wind farms. The SEA committee has earmarked 36 sites with large offshore wind power potential.
Most sites are off the coasts of central Taiwan, and 60 percent are on waters off Changhua County, the habitat of the critically endangered Chinese white dolphin.
The impact of wind farms on the white dolphin population and fishery resources was a main topic of discussion for the review.
There are only about 60 white dolphins near Taiwan and they can be generally found in water no deeper than 15m off the coasts between Miaoli County and Tainan, so it would be advisable to construct wind farms in deep water far offshore, the Forestry Bureau said.
“There are few studies of white dolphins, and government authorities have said they do not know how white dolphins might be affected by noise. The sound of wind turbines and construction noise might drive the dolphins away and threaten their survival,” Taiwan West Coast Conservation Association member Wu Hui-chun (吳惠君) said.
According to a study on marine mammal behavior by German scientists, they could be driven away by noise transmitted from as far as 80km, Wu said.
The committee decided that offshore wind turbines could not be constructed within 500m of white dolphin habitats, and construction noise must be kept below 180 decibel, while construction must be suspended if white dolphins are discovered near construction sites.
Offshore wind farms cannot be constructed near wetlands or ecologically sensitive areas either.
Meanwhile, Changhua County Environmental Protection Union secretary-general Shih Yueh-ying (施月英) said Changhua and Yunlin counties have been known for their rich fishing resources, but the government has ignored the industry for the sake of wind power development.
Developers could allow fishermen to become shareholders in wind farms to share profits so there would be less resistance to development, Taiwan Environmental Protection Union secretary-general Chen Bing-heng (陳秉亨) said.
The offshore wind power case is the first SEA approved development since the Democratic Progressive Party administration was sworn in in May.
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS