Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/24
By: Lung Pei-ning and Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, Dec. 24 (CNA) More than 6,000 people died of diseases exacerbated by excessive exposure to particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) in Taiwan last year, according to research by National Taiwan University released Thursday.

PM2.5, known to be linked to several chronic health problems, caused the deaths of 2,240 ischemic heart disease patients, 2,140 stroke patients, 1,250 lung cancer patients and 645 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients, the research shows.     [FULL  STORY]

GIANT ENTERPRISE:The artist who is responsible for creating the enormous piece of art used more than 4 million bottles, which were obtained through donations

Taipei Times
Date:  Dec 23, 2015
By: Lu Hsien-hsiu and Jonathan Chin  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

A giant mosaic made from recycled plastic bottles depicting Vincent

A mosaic of Vincent van Gogh’s Starry Night made from recycled plastic bottles is pictured in Keelung’s Embrace Cultural and Creative Park on Saturday. Photo: Lu Hsien-hsiu, Taipei Times

van Gogh’s famous painting The Starry Night is to be unveiled on Saturday in Keelung’s Embrace Cultural and Creative Park (擁恆文創園區).

The mosaic, named The Starry Paradise, covers 53 hectares and is expected to set a new Guinness World Record as the largest of its kind.

The project is almost complete and the artist responsible for its creation has received more than 4 million recycled plastic bottles in donations, the park management said.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/16
By: Wei Yun-ling and Lee Mei-yu

Taipei, Dec. 16 (CNA) The air quality in southern Taiwan is expected to remain poor until around Dec. 19 as the conditions there are not conducive to dispersal of the pollutants, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said Wednesday.

The EPA said most of its stations in Taiwan had recorded hazardous air quality levels of 10 on the fine particle pollution index of 1-10 Wednesday morning as a cold air mass moved into Taiwan, bringing pollutants from China.

In northern areas of the country, however, the air quality had started to improve late Wednesday, the EPA said.     [FULL  STORY]

PLEDGE IGNORED:A water resources organization said that southern voters should cast ballots for those who care about the environment, not the DPP or the KMT

Taipei Times
Date:  Dec 17, 2015
By: Chen Wei-han  /  Staff reporter

Environmentalists yesterday accused the presidential candidates of paying

Environmentalists yesterday accused the presidential candidates of paying insufficient attention to pollution issues in southern Taiwan, saying that they refused to sign a pledge drafted by environmental groups. Photo: Taipei Times

insufficient attention to pollution issues in southern Taiwan, saying that they refused to sign a pledge drafted by environmental groups calling for the termination of energy and pollution-intensive development projects in southern municipalities.

A coalition of environmental groups sent the pledge to the Taipei headquarters of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP) earlier this month.

They asked that the parties’ presidential and legislative candidates endorse a combination of proposals, including stopping the expansion of the Southern Taiwan Science Park in Tainan and Kaohsiung, the establishment of an oil refinery area in Kaohsiung and the expansion of China Steel Corp and the state-run oil refiner CPC Corp.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan Today
Date: December 9, 2015

New Taipei City in northern Taiwan is one of the 10 best metropolises in the

New Taipei City Deputy Mayor Chen Shen-hsien (right) exchanges views with the mayors of Seoul, Bonn and Bristol on the sidelines of COP21 in Paris. (Courtesy of NTCG)

world when it comes to climate reporting, according to the local government’s Environmental Protection Department Dec. 8.

The city was selected by London-based Carbon Disclosure Project for a high-quality response to the 2015 CDP Cities Questionnaire across such areas as action plans, strategies and reaching carbon footprint reduction targets.

In a congratulatory letter, CDP said New Taipei will be featured in its upcoming InFocus City Reports, adding that the annual publication provides an outstanding stage to showcase “hard work and commitment to climate change action and resilience.”

According to an NTC Government official, the biggest metropolis in Taiwan is also the champion of sustainability. “This achievement is another vote of confidence from the global community in our carbon emissions reduction capability.”     [FULL  STORY]

Photo courtesy of Council of Agriculture

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/12/05
By: Yang Shu-min and Lee Mei-yu

Taipei, Dec. 5 (CNA) Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture (COA) has given financial support to three large-scale hog farms in Taiwan to turn pig waste into electricity and step up the use of alternative energy sources.

According to Wang Chung-shu (王忠恕), deputy director of the COA’s Department of Animal Industry, the agency has cooperated with the Bureau of Energy under the Ministry of Economic Affairs to support hog operators in tapping into waste-to-energy technology.

Hanbao Farm Co., a hog farm in Changhua County, is Taiwan’s pioneer in cultivating the new method. Since 2013, the company has worked with the county government to build a plant to recycle pig waste into clean water, organic fertilizer and biogas for power generation.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan Today
Date: December 3, 2015

An event highlighting Taiwan’s commitment to combating climate change and its adverse

An event organized by MOFA and ITRI will be held Dec. 4-10 in Paris showcasing the nation’s achievements in reducing carbon emissions through the application of cutting-edge recycling technologies. (Courtesy of ITRI)

effects will commence Dec. 4 at Grand Palais in Paris, according to organizer ROC Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The show, staged jointly by MOFA and Hsinchu County-based Industrial Technology Research Institute, comprises an exhibition showcasing the nation’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address related environmental concerns, as well as a diverse array of interactive activities designed to enhance eco-awareness among attendees.

Targeting representatives from more than 190 nations gathering in Paris Nov. 30 to Dec. 11 for the 21st Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, the event will underscore Taiwan’s steadfast support for the international body’s goals.

“Although not a party to the UNFCCC, the ROC has been a strong proponent of green energy and sustainable development in the global community,” a MOFA official said. “The country remains a pioneer in applying state-of-the-art solutions to address environmental concerns.”     [FULL  STORY]

FRUSTRATION:Greenpeace East Asia senior climate and energy campaigner Li Shuo described talks related to the financing of a shift away from fossil fuels as ‘quite messy’

Taipei Times
Date:  Dec 04, 2015
By: AFP, LE BOURGET, France

Developing nations on Wednesday warned that a bitter row over money was threatening

Indigenous Environmental Network Executive Director Tom Goldtooth, right, native American Sioux and indigenous Amazonians attend “The Vision of Indigenous Peoples to Climate Change” event at the World Climate Change Conference in Le Bourget, France, on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

efforts to seal a historic pact to tame global warming, as hosts France pleaded for compromise.

The UN-brokered talks involving 195 nations are facing a tight deadline of Friday next week to forge an agreement aimed at cutting the greenhouse gases blamed for climate change, and averting its catastrophic impacts.

However, despite more than 150 world leaders opening the talks on Monday with lofty rhetoric about the urgency of the task, bureaucrats became quickly ensnared in familiar rows that have condemned previous efforts to failure.

“My message is clear: We must accelerate the process because there is still a lot of work to do,” said French Minister of Foreign Affairs Laurent Fabius, who is presiding over the negotiations.     [FULL  STORY]