Completion of upgrades to four boiler units at the coal-fired Taichung Power Plant earlier this year would reduce its air pollutant emissions by 80 percent over the next five years, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told a weekly Cabinet meeting on Thursday.
Su told the meeting that the plant’s emissions last year had decreased by half from 2016 levels, Executive Yuan spokesman Ting Yi-ming (丁怡銘) quoted Su as saying, adding that the Executive Yuan in May last year agreed to budget NT$15 billion (US$508.37 million at the current exchange rate) to fund the upgrading of the plant’s boiler units No. 5 to No. 10.
The government is responsible for improving air quality by reducing air pollution, Su said.
Environmental advocates have repeatedly complained about pollution by the Taichung power plant and called for the reduction of the use of coal.
About 40 percent of Taiwan’s air pollution originates outside of the nation’s borders and is difficult to control, but through interdepartmental collaboration and increased dialogue between the central and local governments, it is possible to implement policies targeting the three main sources of controllable air pollution, Su said.
These collaborations have produced significant results, with red alerts for fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) improving by 85 percent from 997 times in 2015 to 146 times last year, Su said.
Southern Taiwan, which is usually more affected by PM2.5 pollution during autumn, saw zero red alerts last year, compared with 120 times in 2018, while the Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan area saw red alerts drop from 99 to 9 times last year, he said.
Citing statistics from Kaohsiung’s Siaogang District (小港), Su said that sulfur dioxide emissions dropped by half from 2017 levels.
Dust levels over the Jhuoshuei River (濁水溪) were also halved compared with 2018 levels, he said.
Efforts by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to encourage the public to exchange aging two-cycle engine scooters resulted in 910,000, or 60 percent, of vehicles being exchanged, Su said.
More than 3,700 low-pollution boiler units used for industrial or commercial purposes have been introduced, surpassing a target of 2,800 units, Su said.
The government in May approved the next stage of air pollution control plans, which are to be implemented from this year to 2023, with an estimated budget of NT$51.1 billion, Su said.
Government efforts are to focus on increased control over pollution sources, aided by the adoption of technology-efficient measures, he said.
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