Residents rejected a Taipei Department of Environmental Protection proposal to paint the city’s official bird, tree and flower on the smokestack of the Muzha Refuse Incineration Plant, favoring its giraffe design via an online voting platform.
In June, the department announced that because of wear and tear, it would replace two giraffes that were painted on the smokestack in Wenshan District’s (文山) Bojia Borough (博嘉) 24 years ago.
In their place, the department was to paint an image featuring Taiwanese blue magpies, banyan trees and rhododendrons, it said, adding that new paint job would be part of a wider refurbishment of the facility.
Photo: CNA
The decision was criticized and on July 6 the department held an informational meeting at which most of the attendees asked for the giraffes to be preserved.
The department said at the meeting that it would make a decision by the end of July, and on July 30, it announced a poll on the future of the smokestack via the city’s i-Voting platform.
Voting began at 9am on Monday last week and ended at midnight on Wednesday.
Voters, who must be registered Taipei residents, were given three options: to keep the giraffe design, use the new design, or paint the smokestack the same color as the rest of the building.
The options received 15,067 votes, 5,446 votes and 438 votes respectively.
The department is to respect the results of the poll and repaint the smokestack accordingly, said Liang Hung-lang (梁宏郎), who heads the plant.
Although the giraffe painting has already been removed, plant officials have kept many of its designs, Liang said, adding that they would have no problem restoring the smokestack to its previous state.
Out of respect for its creators, the department has no plans to use the magpie design for other purposes, he said.
The cost of the paint job is included in the overall cost of the refurbishment project, Liang said, adding that apart from NT$80,000 paid to the creators of the bird design, additional costs would not be incurred.
Painting is expected to begin next month and be completed in February next year.
Although the department did not consult the public before it decided on the magpie design, its desire to give the smokestack a new appearance was well-intended, Bojia Warden Chang Miao-wen (張妙文) said.
Many children grew up with the giraffes and have developed a deep emotional connection to them, Chang said.
Chang said she was pleased to see that the poll reflected the expectations of borough residents.
Additional reporting by CNA
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