The Ministry of Environment on Tuesday opened a six-day exposition featuring circular economy innovations, saying that Taiwan is recycling a majority of its industrial and household waste.
Taiwanese industries and households produce 21 million tonnes and 11 million tonnes of refuse while recycling 85 percent and 60 percent respectively, Deputy Minister of Environment Shen Chih-hsiu (沈志修) said at the expo’s launch at the National Taiwan Science Education Center (NTSEC) in Taipei.
The nation’s enterprises created NT$70 billion (US$2.17 billion) of value thanks to circular economy innovations that reclaimed waste, he said, adding that Taiwan aims to implement sustainable development at the point of origin.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
Industrial design that utilizes sustainable materials is crucial to reducing natural resource extraction toward achieving economic sustainability, Shen said.
Dachun Soap brand supervisor Lee Kuo-jung (李國榮), whose company’s products are featured at the expo, said that Taiwan’s hotel industry each year creates several tonnes of soap only lightly used by guests.
In collaboration with hotels, the soapmaker collects, melts, sterilizes and remolds used soap into new bars, which it then donates to charities, including the Homeless Taiwan Association and the Ark Association, he said.
A spokesperson of toymaker MiToy, another business showcased at the event, said the group makes use of upcycled rice fragments from processing factories and food-grade plastic packaging to make products ranging from building blocks to pet chew toys.
Bentex Textile Industrial Co’s use of banana leaf fibers to make cloth products is also featured.
Writer and television host Hsieh Che-ching (謝哲青), the ministry’s circular economy ambassador, urged Taiwanese to help the growth of the circular economy by choosing sustainable goods and services.
Waste generated by the modern economy poses a huge danger to humanity, Hsieh said.
He said that he has seen discarded television screens in mountain heaps that threaten to overrun the Democratic Republis of the Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, and detritus from the world’s largest shipbreaking yard that ringed Chittagong in Bangladesh.
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday hosted a reception to celebrate Double Ten National Day. Conservative Canadian lawmaker Marc Dalton called Taiwan a “beacon of courage and resilience in the face of rising authoritarianism,” according to a post on the Taiwan in Vancouver Facebook page. Also in attendance were fellow conservative caucus members Tako Van Popta and Chak Au, who said that Taiwan plays an “indispensable role” in ensuring global peace, prosperity and stability due to its strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region, it said. Canadian lawmaker Michael Cooper also recorded a message wishing Taiwan a
RSS