Supply and demand in the nation’s sand and gravel market has gradually begun to return to equilibrium, Minister Without Portfolio Wu Tze-cheng (吳澤成) said on Monday.
Wu, who chairs the Public Construction Commission, made the remark in a briefing to the Legislative Yuan’s Transportation Committee about the commission’s operations.
Many lawmakers expressed concerns over reported shortages of sand and gravel nationwide.
The problem was mainly caused by a postponement of dredging of the Gaoping River (高屏溪), which led to a shortage of sand and gravel in southern Taiwan, Wu said.
The shortage was also exacerbated by suppliers replacing older gravel trucks, leaving them with insufficient trucks to transport the materials, he said.
The supply of sand and gravel from the Gaoping River resumed on Jan. 10 after the Pingtung County Government restarted dredging, he added.
As for a shortage of sand and gravel in northern Taiwan, Wu said that the commission has asked the Ministry of Economic Affairs to increase the amount of the materials transported from eastern Taiwan.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications is to help facilitate the transportation of sand and gravel by speeding up processing at the Port of Taipei, he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Yeh Yi-jin (葉宜津) said that most of the sand and gravel used in northern Taiwan is imported from China, which — along with Southeast Asian countries — has reduced exports of the materials.
Taiwan must be self-reliant in this regard, Yeh said.
There are 30,000 construction projects in Taiwan each year, which the commission should prioritize based on importance, region and launch date to avoid strain due to a lack of resources in one area, DPP Legislator Lee Kun-tse (李昆澤) said, adding that failure to do so could delay all construction.
Despite the slight improvements in supply, a commission report provided to the committee showed that it has yet to fully meet demand for sand and gravel.
The amount of sand and gravel extracted from the Gaoping River last year fell by 1.94 million tonnes, while the inventories of the materials in southern Taiwan from May to December last year decreased by 6 million tonnes, the report said.
A Straits Exchange Foundation official today warned that yielding to political pressure in exchange for access to China’s entertainment industry rarely ends well, amid rumors that China is seeking to lure Taiwanese K-pop star Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜). Chou, more commonly known as Tzuyu, is the only Taiwanese member of the girl group Twice. Her contract with JYP Entertainment is set to expire at the end of this year, and there have been widespread reports that she would not renew it. She is reportedly planning to pursue solo activities under her parents’ agency, Yu Hai Entertainment (瑜海娛樂), although China has also reportedly offered
A tropical depression near Hainan that was once Typhoon Saudel may once again strengthen into a tropical storm, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, but a sea warning for waters around Taiwan is unlikely. CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said that Saudel would return to being a weak tropical storm by late yesterday or early this morning. However, as the storm is to gradually weaken again and would head toward China’s Guangdong Province away from Taiwan, the chances that it would affect Taiwan enough for the CWA to issue a sea warning are relatively low,
China has revised its National Defense Mobilization Law to prepare for a rapid transition to wartime, with an official today saying the measures are aimed at helping Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) fulfill his “historic mission of national unification.” The revised version of the mobilization law is to take effect on Oct. 1, marking the first major revision since the law was enacted in 2010. The amendments define national defense mobilization as measures taken in response to threats to national sovereignty, unification, territorial integrity, security and development interests, including efforts to ensure rapid transition between peacetime and wartime and convert economic and
Yielding to political pressure in exchange for access to China’s entertainment industry rarely ends well, a Straits Exchange Foundation official said yesterday amid rumors that China is seeking to lure Taiwanese K-pop star Chou Tzu-yu (周子瑜). Chou, who goes by Tzuyu, is the only Taiwanese member of the girl group Twice. Her contract with JYP Entertainment is set to expire at the end of this year, and there have been widespread rumors that she would not renew it. She is reportedly planning to pursue a solo career under her parents’ agency, Yu Hai Entertainment, although China has also reportedly offered to help Tzuyu
RSS