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Protesters rally against KKPTC plan
MARINE PEARL IMPERILED:An area of Changhua County that
produces a third of the country¡¦s oysters is slated for a petrochemical
industrial park project
By Loa Iok-sin / Staff Reporter
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Activists gather outside Taipei Guest House on
Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei yesterday before heading to an overnight vigil at
the Environmental Protection Administration, where an environmental impact
evaluation will be held for Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co¡¦s planned
petrochemical complex in Changhua County.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Hundreds of people ¡X mainly university students ¡X last night staged a rally
outside the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) to protest a
petrochemical industrial park project proposed by Kuokuang Petrochemical
Technology Co (KKPTC), ahead of an environmental impact assessment meeting to be
held this morning.
Chanting slogans critical of the project, and urging the EPA to reject it,
hundreds of students from universities across the country rallied outside the
EPA despite the rain and the cool weather.
¡§We rally here to tell academics and government representatives taking part in
the environmental impact assessment meeting that we¡¦re keeping an eye on them,¡¨
said Huang Yu-ying (¶À¸Î¿o), a junior student at National Tsing Hua University.
¡§The project should be turned down to protect Taiwan¡¦s agriculture and the rich
wetland ecosystem.¡¨
Huang went on to say the site selected for the project on the north side of the
mouth of Jhuoshuei River (¿B¤ô·Ë) is one of the very few large wetlands on the west
coast following decades of industrial and urban development.
Besides the rich ecosystem of the wetlands, the area is a key agricultural
center, with an active marine-farming industry along the coast that produces
about one-third of the country¡¦s oysters.
¡§The wetlands should be declared a natural reserve and properly protected
instead of being used for a petrochemical park,¡¨ Huang said.
Sharing his concerns, Changhua-based writer Wu Sheng (§dÑÔ) said it was obvious
that the economic benefits the development project would bring did not merit the
ecological destruction they would cause.
¡§Petrochemical plants can only last for a few decades, but the rich ecosystem
and the deep-rooted farming culture were developed over hundreds if not
thousands of years,¡¨ Wu said.
¡§It¡¦s quite obvious how you should choose if the choice is to be made purely
based on scientific considerations,¡¨ he said.
A 69-year-old man surnamed Wu (§d), born in Changhua but who now runs a bookstore
in Taipei, attended the rally and said he would stay overnight to show his
concern for his home county.
He recalled how beautiful the Changhua County countryside was when he was a
child.
¡§Development has changed the situation, and the new petrochemical complex would
just destroy everything along with the other petrochemical complex already in
existence on the south side of the river mouth,¡¨ he said. ¡§It¡¦s the capitalists
who are going to enjoy the fruits [from the development project], while the
people suffer.¡¨
Several bands performed at the rally to show their support.
Hundreds of local residents from Changhua County are scheduled to join the
demonstrators this morning as the meeting is scheduled to begin at 9:30am.
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