Penghu County could be developed into a chain of “green” energy islands with distinctive tourist attractions, Premier Lin Chuan (林全) said yesterday.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Yang Yao (楊曜) asked the premier during a legislative session what the government is planning for the county’s development after casinos were turned down as an option in a referendum on Saturday last week.
Penghu has clean and beautiful landscapes that could be transformed into eco-tourism attractions and its islands can be given distinctive “green” energy features alongside further development of low-carbon projects, Lin said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsung, Taipei Times
“The county’s tourism could be upgraded if it featured ‘green’ energy and its beauty and special characteristics can be seen. We believe that Penghu’s natural landscapes and features have the potential to be turned into global attractions,” he said.
Yang asked the government to help the county build tourist sites in addition to existing venues — an aquarium, a geology museum, a crab museum and an ocean resources museum — and construct indoor facilities so that tourism can be maintained during winter, when the county sees a drastic drop in the number of visitors.
Lin said he agreed that winter tourism could be improved, but added that tourism-oriented islands would increase the added value of summer tourism and allow the environment to rest during winter.
DPP Legislator Chen Man-li (陳曼麗), who campaigned against allowing casinos in the county, said the archipelago needs sustainable development.
Penghu’s natural beauty would be protected if it is shielded from overdevelopment, but the county also needs economic development, as Penghu Commissioner Chen Kuang-fu (陳光復) said that his government’s annual revenue is NT$300 million (US$9.5 million), while its annual spending exceeds NT$5 billion, Chen Man-li said.
“What the county needs most is better transportation. Penghu has a total of 90 islands, and transportation between them, and between the county and Taiwan proper is crucial,” she said.
Penghu is actually larger than it seems “when you join its 90 islands,” Chen Man-li said, adding that Taiwan is a maritime nation.
An “ocean commission” has been planned, but not yet established by the Executive Yuan, Chen Man-li said and asked the premier for a timetable.
“There are two stages in the government’s restructuring plan, the first would be simpler mergers, such as the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission,” Lin said.
Establishing a “ministry of environmental resources” and an “ocean commission” would be handled in the second stage, he said.
“Whether the Coast Guard Administration, which is a big agency, would be included in the planned commission is still being debated, as some people are calling for a reconsideration of the commission’s positioning, which should be oriented toward ocean policies, strategic thinking and research.” Lin said.
Eight restaurants in Taiwan yesterday secured a one-star rating from the Michelin Guide Taiwan for the first time, while three one-star restaurants from last year’s edition were promoted to two stars. Forty-three restaurants were awarded one star this year, including 34 in Taipei, five in Taichung and four in Kaohsiung. Hosu (好嶼), Chuan Ya (川雅), Sushi Kajin (鮨嘉仁), aMaze (心宴), La Vie by Thomas Buhner, Yuan Yi (元一) and Frassi in Taipei and Front House (方蒔) in Kaohsiung received a one-star rating for the first time. Hosu is known for innovative Taiwanese dishes, while Chuan Ya serves Sichuan cuisine and aMaze specializes
Taitung County is to launch charter flights to Malaysia at the end of this year, after setting up flights to Vietnam and Thailand, the Taitung County Government said yesterday. The new charter flight services, provided by low-cost carrier Batik Air Malaysia, would be part of five-day tour packages for visits to Taitung County or Malaysia. The Batik Air charter flight, with about 200 seats, would take Malaysian tourists to Taitung on Dec. 30 and then at 12:35pm return to Kuala Lumpur with Taiwanese tourists. Another charter flight would bring the Taiwanese home on Jan. 3 next year, arriving at 5:30pm, before taking the
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. (THSRC) plans to ease strained capacity during peak hours by introducing new fare rules restricting passengers traveling without reserved seats in 2026, company Chairman Shih Che (史哲) said Wednesday. THSRC needs to tackle its capacity issue because there have been several occasions where passengers holding tickets with reserved seats did not make it onto their train in stations packed with individuals traveling without a reserved seat, Shih told reporters in a joint interview in Taipei. Non-reserved seats allow travelers maximum flexibility, but it has led to issues relating to quality of service and safety concerns, especially during
An exhibition celebrating Taiwan and Japan’s comic culture opened on Saturday in Taichung, featuring a section that explores Taiwanese reproductions of Japanese comics from when martial law limited Japanese representation. “A Century of Manga Culture: An Encounter of Taiwan and Japan’s Youth” held its Taiwan opening ceremony at Taichung’s National Taiwan Museum of Comics after an initial one-month run in Japan’s Kyoto International Manga Museum between May 24 and June 24. Much like the Kyoto exhibition, the show mainly celebrates the comic connection between Taiwan and Japan through late Taiwanese comic book