The new Ministry of Environment officially started operations on Tuesday after a plaque-unveiling ceremony and inauguration of its first minister, Shieu Fuh-sheng (薛富盛).
The ministry was upgraded from the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) established in 1987 after a law to redesignate the EPA a ministry cleared the legislature on May 9 and was promulgated by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on May 24.
Addressing the plaque-unveiling ceremony, Tsai said the ministry is determined to respond to global trends and expressed confidence it would work with various sectors of society to help accelerate the nation’s transition to netzero emissions.
Photo: CNA
Tsai also praised Shieu for his promotion of research into the circular economy as president of National Chung Hsing University in Taichung from August 2015 to last month.
During his time there, Shieu led the establishment of the country’s first academy dedicated to the circular economy at the university’s Nantou campus, Tsai added.
Shieu said that environmental sustainability is not just a mission but also a grave challenge facing the world, adding that he would strive to tackle the challenge and combat climate change in his new position.
Shieu also outlined his vision for upgrading the nation’s management strategies for pollution, from control to prevention and improving environmental education, while working closely with domestic academic and research institutions and the business sector to confront environment challenges and jointly protect the homeland.
Four specialized agencies — the Climate Change Agency, the Resource Recycling Agency, the Chemical Substance Management Agency, and the Environmental Management Agency — and a National Environmental Research Institute have been established under the Ministry of Environment.
The new minister also said he would visit Keelung Mayor George Hsieh (謝國樑) to discuss Taiwan Power Co’s plan to build a liquefied natural gas receiving station on Keelung’s northern coast, which is opposed by environmental groups and local political figures, including Hsieh, who believe the project poses a threat to biodiversity.
The coast guard on Friday took a Chinese fishing boat and the 17 people on board into custody, after it rammed into a patrol boat while attempting to flee. A 100-tonne coast guard vessel at about 8am discovered a Chinese fishing boat illegally operating in waters about 11 nautical miles (20.4km) northwest of Hsinchu, the Hsinchu offshore flotilla of the Coast Guard Administration said. The crew refused to allow law enforcement to board the ship and attempted to flee, it added. The coast guard vessel and another ship chased the fishing boat for about a half hour, during which time the Chinese boat
Vice President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said that Beijing was trying to “annex” Taiwan, while China said its recent series of drills near Taiwan are aimed at combating the “arrogance” of separatist forces. The Ministry of National Defense earlier this month said that it had observed dozens of Chinese fighters, drones, bombers and other aircraft, as well as warships and the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong, operating nearby. The increased frequency of China’s military activities has raised the risk of events “getting out of hand” and sparking an accidental clash, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said last week. Asked about the spurt
China’s Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong has asked foreign consulates in Hong Kong to submit details of their local staff, which is more proof that the “one country, two systems” model no longer exists, a Taiwanese academic said. The office sent letters dated Monday last week to consulates in the territory, giving them one month to submit the information it requires. The move followed Beijing’s attempt to obtain floor plans for all properties used by foreign missions in Hong Kong last year, which raised concerns among diplomats that the information could be used for
‘ABNORMITY’: News of the military exercises on the coast of the Chinese province facing Taiwan were made public by the Ministry of National Defense on Thursday Taiwan’s military yesterday said it has detected the Chinese military initiating a round of exercises at a bay area in coastal Fujian Province, which faces Taiwan, since early yesterday morning and it has been closely monitoring the drills. The exercises being conducted at Fujian’s Dacheng Bay featured an undisclosed number of People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) warplanes, warships and ground troops, the Ministry of National Defense said in a press statement. The ministry did not disclose what kind of military exercises are being conducted there and for how long they would be happening, but it did say that it has been closely watching
RSS