The proposed amendment to the Organic Act of the Executive Yuan (行政院組織法) should include a new Ministry of Environment and Energy, which would have expanded powers to implement broad-based environmental initiatives, a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker said yesterday.
“The current system spreads environmental policy across too many agencies,” DPP Legislator Tien Chiu-Chin (田秋堇) said, adding that she believed the new body could be the answer to the nation’s environmental problems.
She said she had support from a few Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers.
Her proposal said that many responsibilities of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Council of Agriculture and the Atomic Energy Council could be handled by a Ministry of Environment and Energy.
Agencies responsible for energy, nuclear regulation, water resources, fisheries and forestry policies would be assigned to the new ministry, as well as the National Parks Commission and EPA departments.
Tien said the proposal would see the emphasis on economic development shift toward a more conservation-based approach.
The proposal currently says the EPA would be renamed the Ministry of Environmental Resources. Expanded responsibilities include water resources, national parks, forestry protection and weather.
The KMT caucus said yesterday that despite the end of the legislative session tomorrow, they expect the bill to pass as a consensus had already been achieved with DPP lawmakers.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
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
RSS