Once called the “dark village,” the Smangus Tribe area in Hsinchu County has become a shining example of Taiwan’s illumination renovation, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Saturday.
Ahead of World Earth Day tomorrow, the Smangus demonstrated advanced illumination concepts and equipment such as LED lighting devices that are eco-friendly and conserve energy.
One of the last areas in Taiwan to be connected to electrical supplies, the Smangus village relied on standard fixtures that consumed a lot of energy and caused occasional blackouts.
The Bureau of Energy, Taiwan Power Co and the Industrial Technology Research Institute recently decided, however, to turn the remote village into a model for illumination, replacing the old devices with electricity-saving bulbs.
The heads of the tribe stressed that the renovation could improve both the stability of the electricity supply and energy conservation and said the change was in line with the philosophy of their ancestors, who lived in tune with nature.
The bureau noted that the new fixtures lowered electricity bills, and saved on the costs of building infrastructure for the neighborhood, while maintaining the original landscape by integrating the high-tech lighting with the natural environment.
Adopting similar energy-saving lighting devices around the country could potentially save between 30 percent and 80 percent of the 26 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity used for illumination annually, which represents about 12 percent of Taiwan’s total electricity consumption of 221.4 billion kilowatt-hours, the bureau said.
“The energy-saving lighting could also help reduce carbon dioxide emissions,” the bureau said.
To realize such savings, the ministry has worked to promote both the energy efficiency and standards for energy-saving products, while launching a green revolution in illumination this year, the bureau said.
These efforts include assisting local public and private organizations to replace incandescent lamps, which consume more energy, and promoting the use of energy-saving LED products.
Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials including Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) are to be summoned for questioning and then transferred to prosecutors for holding an illegal assembly in Taipei last night, the Taipei Police said today. Chu and two others hosted an illegal assembly and are to be requested to explain their actions, the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongzheng (中正) First Precinct said, referring to a protest held after Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), KMT Taipei's chapter director, and several other KMT staffers were questioned for alleged signature forgery in recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. Taipei prosecutors had filed
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
NEW WORLD: Taiwan is pursuing innovative approaches to international relations through economics, trade and values-based diplomacy, the foreign minister said Taiwan would implement a “three-chain strategy” that promotes democratic values in response to US tariffs, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said. Taiwan would aim to create a “global democratic value chain,” seek to capitalize on its position within the first island chain and promote a “non-red supply chain,” Lin was quoted as saying in the ministry’s written report to the Legislative Yuan submitted ahead of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee meeting slated for today. The Ministry would also uphold a spirit of mutual beneficial collaboration, maintaining close communication and consultations with Washington to show that Taiwan-US cooperation
RSS