The Taipei Dome, being built on the site of the old Songshan Tobacco Factory, has been steeped in controversy since its inception. After taking office, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) reviewed the development and pledged to consider the necessity of removing trees from the area. Farglory Land Development Co chairman Chao Teng-hsiung (趙藤雄), who is eager to get on with the project, then held a press conference at which he asked for a meeting with Ko and said that “frankly speaking, these trees are ugly ... more beautiful trees could be planted there later,” adding that it seemed “human life is worth less than the life of a tree.”
In saying trees are more valuable than people, Chao was referring to a planned underground passage that would double as an emergency exit from the Taipei Dome. The blueprint shows that the passage would be 80m wide, but since commercial premises are planned along its sides, only 18m would remain in the middle — a greatly reduced width from that intended in the original plan.
If it is a requirement that a passage doubling as an emergency exit must be 80m wide, then an underground shopping arcade should not be built there. Farglory is planning to profit from leasing shop space in the passage. If 18m is enough to provide the passage with emergency exit facilities, then the whole design could be narrowed and the trees would not have to be moved.
Chao’s statements about the trees have become the target of much ridicule and criticism on the Internet. Organizations that want to preserve the trees say that it is 87 trees, not 33, that are at stake, and that another 50 have already been moved — and died. Chao’s statement that other trees can be planted to replace trees that have been cut down is a long-term pledge that does not carry much credibility.
Since the plans for the Taipei Dome were initiated in 2007, tree-preservation organizations have been advocating the protection of more than 1,000 trees in the area. In 2009, a 100-year-old camphor tree said to be the largest in Taipei was moved. The Green Party’s Calvin Wen (溫炳原) and Pan Han-shen (潘翰聲) climbed the tree to try and protect it, while their comrade Yu Yi (游藝) tried to stop a crane from moving the tree. In the end it was moved — and died.
Land surrounding the dome is expensive. Farglory has done all it can to expand the commercial area and volume. The Taipei City Government approved it all and started to cut down trees, calling it “site preparation.” Hundreds of trees were pushed over by excavators and then hacked into pieces, as Farglory’s only concern was to clear the site.
There have been many calls for a return to the original design, which only included the dome structure, while reducing the surrounding commercial facilities and preserving more trees and greenery and protecting the city environment, but these calls have been all but ignored.
Many people say that Farglory’s escalation of the conflict is a response to the Ko administration replacing that of former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) — which was very well-inclined toward the company. Farglory, which has now lost its support in City Hall, could be facing fines over the project, which is well behind schedule. If the city government forces changes to the design of the underground passage due to the controversy over the trees, that would give Farglory a legitimate reason for delaying construction.
The city government should insist on protecting the trees and the environment, and treat every tree as an important environmental asset that must not be lost.
Each of the Taipei Dome project’s many problems should be clarified and eliminated one by one.
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