The government should improve children’s outdoor spaces and accelerate carbon reduction programs, as the risk of heat-related injury due to high summer temperatures rises each year, Greenpeace told a news conference yesterday.
Greenpeace examined summer temperatures in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung to determine the effects of high temperatures and climate change on children’s outdoor activities, citing data garnered by China Medical University, which defines a wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of 29°C or higher as posing the risk of heat-related injury.
According to the Central Weather Administration, WBGT, commonly referred to as the heat index, estimates the effect of heat stress on humans by combining temperature, humidity, wind speed, sun angle and cloud cover.
Photo: CNA
Greenpeace said that in the summer of 2023, there were 780 hours of heat-related injury risk, up 213 hours from the previous year.
If no aggressive carbon reduction measures are taken and global temperatures rise by 4°C, the number could rise to 1,193 hours by 2100, it said.
That would mean more than half of the summer would pose the risk of heat-related harm, it said.
Wang Hsiu-chuan (王秀娟), chair of Taiwan Parks and Playgrounds for Children by Children, said that a heat test at a park in May last year found that natural loose surface coverings such as bark or wood chips, and shaded areas helped to reduce heat-related risks.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and local governments should establish concrete plans for cooling, dissipating heat and setting shade ratios at parks and playgrounds, Wang said.
The government should accelerate carbon reduction and energy transition plans, and consider children’s needs when setting carbon reduction targets, Greenpeace said.
The government should also improve children’s outdoor spaces by adding shade, sprinklers and water play areas, as well as heat injury warnings and emergency medical equipment, it said.
It should provide families with subsidies during high temperatures, including for public transportation, it added.
The Ministry of Environment is developing a “cool map” to identify outdoor shaded areas and indoor cool spots, such as parks with good tree cover, places with splash pools or facilities with cooling systems, Climate Change Administration Director-General Tsai Lin-yi (蔡玲儀) said.
The Ministry of Environment is exploring how to use natural methods and environmental design to reduce temperatures and improve outdoor conditions for children, and would develop guidelines for local governments, Tsai said.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
RSS