An environmental protection group yesterday said that Kinmen County could become overly dependent on China after the county signed a landmark water agreement with Chinese authorities on Monday.
Purchasing water from China means that Beijing would have increased control over the region, Taiwan Water Resources Protection Union director Jennifer Nien (粘麗玉) said, adding that Beijing could use the deal to coerce Kinmen into submitting to its demands by severing water supplies or increasing prices.
She urged the Kinmen County Government to build seawater desalination plants, preserve its groundwater reserves and carry out regular reservoir dredging work so that the county can retain a degree of water sovereignty in the event of a worst-case scenario.
Under Monday’s agreement, China is to deliver 15,000 tonnes of water per day to Kinmen, with the amount gradually increasing over time to 34,000 tonnes per day starting from the 10th year of the arrangement.
The pact also poses a risk to Kinmen’s environment and quality of life, Nien said, citing concerns over the construction of an underwater pipeline connecting China’s Fujian Province and Kinmen, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017.
The quality of the water from China is also questionable, as water in Chinese reservoirs often contains high concentrations of impurities, she said.
“People in many Chinese provinces do not bother to boil tap water. Instead they use water dispensers and buy drinking water from private firms,” she said.
Citing Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Yang Ying-hsiung’s (楊應雄) pledge to push for Kinmen to be allowed to purchase electricity from China as well, Nien said that if utilities on Kinmen come under Beijing’s control, it would bring Kinmen closer to China and compromise its status as Taiwan’s military outpost.
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
A Taiwanese academic yesterday said that Chinese Ambassador to Denmark Wang Xuefeng (王雪峰) disrespected Denmark and Japan when he earlier this year allegedly asked Japan’s embassy to make Taiwan’s representatives leave an event in Copenhagen. The Danish-language Berlingske on Sunday reported the incident in an article with the headline “The emperor’s birthday ended in drama in Copenhagen: More conflict may be on the way between Denmark and China.” It said that on Feb. 26, the Japanese embassy in Denmark held an event for Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s birthday, with about 200 guests in attendance, including representatives from Taiwan. After addressing the Japanese hosts, Wang
One of two tropical depressions that formed offshore this morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. It is expected to move in a northwesterly direction as it continues building momentum, possibly intensifying into Typhoon Mitag this weekend, she added. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is expected to approach southeast of Taiwan on Monday and pass through the Bashi Channel between Tuesday and Wednesday,
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had
RSS