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Taskforce equivocates
on naphtha plant
NOT DONE YET: Protesters refused to meet with
the president or be soothed by his spokesman, demanding the project be
completely and permanently scrapped
By Shelley Shan and Mo Yan-chih / Staff Reporters
A member of an environmental
protection group fixes a chain of oyster shells onto a barricade outside the
Environmental Protection Administration yesterday as a way of expressing his
opposition to Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co’s proposed naphtha cracker
project in Changhua County.
Photo: CNA
President Ma Ying-jeou bows
yesterday after addressing the media during a press conference. Ma said he will
not continue to support Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co’s proposed naphtha
cracker project in Changhua County.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Members of environmental
protection groups lock hands during a protest outside the Presidential Office
yesterday in response to Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co’s proposed naphtha
cracker project in Changhua County.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
A review taskforce yesterday failed to
reach a final conclusion on the future of a proposed Kuokuang Petrochemical
Technology Co’s (KPTC, 國光石化) naphtha cracker complex and proposed two scenarios
to be evaluated by the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Committee next
month, a decision that did not please environmentalists.
EIA Committee member Chiang Pen-chi (蔣本基), who presided at the meeting, said the
two options were that the committee either reject the project, which was planned
to be constructed in Dacheng Township (大城), Changhua County, or give it
conditional approval. In all, 11 reasons were given as to why the project should
be abandoned and 24 conditions were listed if conditional approval were given.
About 40 minutes after the second day of meetings by the taskforce concluded at
3pm, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) told a press conference at the Presidential
Office that he opposed building the project in Changhua County.
Leading top government officials in explaining the government’s position on the
matter, Ma said the complex, which was to be built in a wetland area, would have
an “unbearable” impact on the local ecology and environment, and that the
government should take the initiative in halting the project.
“The impact caused by the complex would be unbearable for the town and its
people, and as an arbiter, it’s time for us to declare our stance,” Ma said.
“However, we will not and cannot give up on the petrochemical industry,” he
said, adding that the Cabinet would start a thorough examination on the
development of the industry.
Ma said the Council of Economic Affairs would instruct state-run refiner CPC
Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油), the largest shareholder of KPTC, to reject building
the complex in Changhua during a shareholders’ meeting next week.
CPC Taiwan holds 43 percent of Kuokuang’s shares, with the remaining 57 percent
held by private investors.
“I know [halting the project] is a difficult decision to make and the decision
will have a substantial impact on the petrochemical industry and Dacheng
Township,” Ma said. “However, the decision gives us a chance to seek balance
between economic development and environmental protection.”
Ma said the decision was made after a series of discussions on the issue with
environmental groups, local residents and experts. He denied the decision was
made to please local residents for electoral purposes.
Ma accused the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of planning the complex and
leaving the thorny issue for his administration, adding that his administration
took the responsibility to solve the problem when it was determined that the
proposed site was inappropriate.
The Council of Economic Affairs will also assist KPTC in weighing other options,
including moving the complex abroad, while helping the township create more
employment.
Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-shiang (施顏祥) said it would be difficult to
find another location in Taiwan for the complex, which required a large plot of
land, but declined to confirm whether the ministry would move the project to
another country.
When asked about the negative impact of the halted complex on the local economy
and the development of the petrochemical industry, Shih said the ministry would
ensure the supply chain remained sufficient, adding that a cross--departmental
discussion on the development of the industry would be held.
Yesterday’s decision by the taskforce and Ma’s announcement were met with a cool
response from environmental activists, who had staged sit-in protests in front
of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) for three days.
After the ruling, protesters called yesterday “a sad Earth Day.”
Representatives said they refused to buy Ma’s declaration and said his exclusion
of Changhua from the list of possible sites for the proposed complex was simply
intended to shift the focus of the issue.
The environmentalists refused to meet Ma at a traditional meeting to observe
Earth Day and instead held a demonstration outside the Presidential Office to
demand that the project be scrapped altogether.
Although Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) tried to soothe the
angry crowd and invite some of them into the office, they refused the offer and
insisted they would not make any concessions over the matter.
The discontent also spread to two experts on the taskforce — Chan Chang-chuan
(詹長權) of National Taiwan University and James Liu (劉祖乾) of National Chung Shan
University — who said they were not pleased with the turn of events.
“The ruling was pre-determined and deviates from professional judgment,” Chan
said. “This sets a bad example for the public. How could such an irresponsible
and equivocal decision be made?”
Chan also accused Chiang of being reluctant to put the project to a vote, adding
that the way Chiang interpreted the information differed markedly from most
people’s understanding.
Commenting on the ruling, KPTC chairman Chen Bao-lang (陳寶郎) said the company
would carefully study the terms of the ruling and then discuss them with its
shareholders.
The EIA committee has held 24 meetings over the location of the plant. While
experts on the committee have evaluated the project’s negative impact on the
environment, Chen said they have never addressed the positive contributions the
project would make to the economy.
Asked whether the company was contemplating other locations for the complex,
Chen said the company had yet to discuss such options.
However, sources at the EPA said KPTC was likely to drop the bid before the EIA
members meet at the general assembly next month, as Ma had clearly indicated his
stance on the issue.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
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