Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday announced that the city would not hold a New Year’s Eve fireworks show, in an effort to reduce air pollution.
Many Taichung residents have said they hope the city could celebrate the new year without fireworks, Taichung City Government spokesman Cho Kuan-ting (卓冠廷) said, adding that it marks a groundbreaking change for the city.
The city’s annual concentration of PM2.5 — fine particulate matter that measures 2.5 micrometers or less — has been decreasing since 2014, with a reading of 20.1 micrometers per cubic meter last month, the city said.
Photo courtesy of the Taichung City Government
A PM2.5 concentration between 54.5 and 150.4 micrometers per cubic meter is categorized as unhealthy for all walks of life, according to the Environmental Protection Administration’s air quality monitoring index.
The Taoyuan City Government said it still plans to hold a fireworks show to ring in the new year, adding that the fireworks would cost NT$150,000 and last for three minutes.
The city government does not mean to be extravagant, but hopes residents can happily usher in the new year, Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) said.
For next year’s celebration, the city government is open to alternative plans, he added.
Tainan, Kaohsiung and New Taipei City said they stopped having fireworks for New Year’s Eve festivities years ago.
The Tainan City Government said it has replaced traditional fireworks shows with digital light performances since 2012.
The Kaohsiung City Government said it has not held a New Year’s Eve countdown celebration for four years, and that Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) only attended such festivities held by the private sector.
As for the New Taipei City Government, it said its activities celebrating Christmas last for one month, and that the city government only has a flag-hoisting ceremony on the morning of Jan. 1.
On Thursday, Taipei 101 announced that it would ring in the New Year with a six-minute fireworks display, the longest in the history of the annual event in Taipei.
Chen Shih-ming (陳世明), president of Taipei Financial Center Co, which operates the landmark building, said that due to recent concerns over air pollution, the fireworks display has been cut from 30,000 to 16,000 rounds.
In light of the air pollution concern, local environmental groups said they would hold a rally against air pollution tomorrow in Taichung and Kaohsiung to demand that the central government better address the health hazard.
Participants in Taichung are to march around the city government’s building to voice their appeal of “no coal,” while in Kaohsiung, marchers are to meet at Exit 4 of the Aozihdi MRT Station (凹子底) and parade along Boai 2nd Road, the organizers said.
Additional reporting by Hung Jui-chin, Wang Jung-hsiang, Ho Yu-hua and Wei Ching-yun
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