Yilan opens Taiwan’s first on-site ocean recycling center

Yilan opens Taiwan’s first on-site ocean recycling center

2025-01-16

A new recycling center and environmental education site has opened in Yilan. It is the first recycling center in Taiwan to provide recycling of ocean waste dredged up on site. Located at Ta-hsi Fishing Harbor in Yilan County, it’s the product of a multilateral collaboration. Even the building itself is made of recycled materials! And it features a very unusual art installation, giving visitors a “fish eye view” on ocean waste.

Polystyrene is pushed into a machine that looks like an ice maker. Before long, something that looks like maltose is squeezed out slowly. The mysterious machine is a polystyrene extruder.

Huang Shih-hsiang
Ta-hsi Fishing Harbor boat captain
We heat it up and melt it down, melt down the shape. About 20 pieces of polystyrene here weigh almost five kilos. When they’re melted down like this, they’re still quite heavy, almost one kilo.

A bulky bag of polystyrene is melted down to just one fifth of its original volume, into a firm and sturdy material. In recent years, many people have dedicated themselves to dredging ocean waste. But once the waste has been dredged up, the next headache is where to put it. Now a well-known company is working with Yilan County government and civic society groups to promote this ocean waste recycling project.

What’s even more incredible is that this temporary warehouse for ocean waste at Ta-hsi Fishing Harbor is itself half made of recycled waste! A whopping 800 kilos of plastic bottles, lids and polystyrene dredged up at the harbor was the raw material for this building.

Hsu Wen-hung
Founder of design company
We can take a sack this big, and turn it into five pieces of melted plastic this small. The costs of transport, the costs of labor, and most importantly, each freight journey produces carbon emissions.

The warehouse also features an “Ocean Life Experience Window,” which simulates the view of a sea creature looking at an ocean filled with waste. The warehouse is a new model site for environmental education, aiming to raise awareness of ecological issues among the population.

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全國首創! 宜蘭"海廢就地回收"計劃打造海廢暫置所

2025-01-16

宜蘭縣大溪漁港設置了全國首創的「海廢就地回收成材」海廢暫置所，縣府整合當地環保艦隊與民間團體，透過公私協力，推動海洋廢棄物回收再利用，希望把大溪漁港打造成，減廢漁港的示範基地。

把一塊塊保麗龍，丟進這一大台，像是製冰機的機器，沒多久，宛如麥芽糖的物體，緩緩的流了出來，這神奇的機器，就是保麗龍「減容機」。

[[大溪漁港環保艦隊船長黃士洋]]
“熱熔，把它減容，把這個體積給減掉，這大概20個的保麗龍大概的重量將近5公斤，那熔完的話，像這樣子的話，還算比較重，將近是1公斤。”

把龐大的保麗龍，成功縮減為原本的1/5大小，而且更結實。這幾年許多人投入打撈海廢行列，但海廢撈上來，堆置問題，很傷腦筋，有知名企業和宜蘭縣府、以及民間組織共同合作，推動海廢轉生計畫。

更令人不可思議的是，這處大溪漁港海廢暫置所，有一半的成分，就是用這些海上垃圾製成！使用大溪漁港之前打撈上的寶特瓶、瓶蓋、保麗龍等共800公斤海廢，轉生成為再生材料。

[[設計公司創辦人許文鴻]]
“能夠把這麼大的太空包最後變成5塊這麼小塊的減容塊之後，在運輸上的成本，人力成本、運輸的成本，還有最重要的就是，每一趟運輸都是造成碳排放量的產生。”

暫置所更透過「海洋生物體驗窗孔」設計，模擬海洋生物的視角，看見海中滿佈垃圾的場景，進環境教育，藉由海廢暫置所，成為減廢示範基地，擴大全民環保意識。

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KMT proposes slashing ministry operational budgets to just NT$1

The government’s budget for 2025 continues to be hotly debated in the Legislative Yuan. Opposition lawmakers have proposed severe funding cuts including the complete elimination of ministerial media budgets. They’ve also proposed freezing 70% of government funding at several ministries. The funding would only be unfrozen with approval from the legislature after the first 30% is spent. Premier Cho Jung-tai on Thursday held a press conference on the matter. He warned that the harsh cuts would bring government operations to a halt and put the country in an extremely dangerous situation. Let’s hear more.

Cho Jung-tai
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The Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the Mainland Affairs Council and the National Communications Commission would get an operational budget of just NT$1. How would any of the public servants there perform their duties? There would be no way to distribute agricultural subsidies or carry out cybersecurity operations. Splitting the budget into a 70-30 ratio is unprecedented. They are asking all government agencies to reduce water and electricity expenses by 30%. That is a figure that has not been calculated by any standard. If we reduce media and advertising budgets by 60%, we’ll have no way of letting the general public understand government policies. Misinformation will run rampant, and harm the country and society. Anti-drug, anti-fraud and anti-money laundering campaigns won’t be feasible.

Wu Cheng-wen
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In the 50 years since our science parks were established, never has such a thing happened in the government. If 70% of our budget is frozen, operations at our science parks would be disrupted starting April.

KMT lawmaker Chang Chia-chun has proposed slashing the Ministry of Agriculture’s operational budget from NT$120 million to just NT$1. Deputy Agriculture Minister Hu Jong-I says the NT$1 budget would not allow the ministry to disburse agricultural subsidies or disaster insurance payments, affecting 520,000 people. As for the Ministry of National Defense, the budget proposal including cuts and freezes would essentially leave the ministry without 44% of its total budget. The move would have a severe impact on equipment maintenance, ammunition training and refueling of aircraft and vessels. It would also severely affect Taiwan’s capabilities to procure defensive equipment.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Sun to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
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Lai meets lawmakers to represent Taiwan at Trump’s inauguration

President Lai Ching-te on Thursday met with a group of lawmakers who will represent Taiwan at Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration in the US. The atmosphere at the meeting was rather light-hearted, in sharp contrast with the intense standoffs between ruling and opposition lawmakers in the Legislative Yuan. In his speech, Lai underscored the importance of unity, which has been interpreted as his offering of an olive branch to the opposition.

Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu and seven lawmakers are soon to depart for the US to represent Taiwan at Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration. Two days before the trip, President Lai Ching-te invited the delegation for a chat over coffee at the Presidential Office, and presented them with gifts.

Han cracked a joke, getting laughs from everyone in the hall. The gifts included a vacuum flask to keep drinks warm and a pack of pocket warmers to keep the winter cold at bay in the US. The exchange also seemed to warm up the recent frosty relations between ruling and opposition parties.

Lai Ching-te
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Amid the challenges we are facing in our country, I want to emphasize this. In Formosa, there is no grudge that cannot be put aside, and there are no grievances that can’t be overcome. The most important thing is unity. I look forward to seeing Taiwan unite. There is power in unity.

Han Kuo-yu
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Taiwan’s security is like a four-legged table. The first leg is protecting the ROC. The second leg is protecting democracy and freedom. The third leg is maintaining Taiwan-US relations. And the fourth leg is maintaining cross-strait peace.

The delegation will set off on Saturday. Besides Trump’s inauguration they will also meet with other US officials and think tanks. Lai gave the group several missions for the visit.

Lai Ching-te
President
You must clearly convey Taiwan’s heartfelt blessings and our people’s unwavering commitment to democracy. We hope to set a new milestone in Taiwan-US relations.

Han Kuo-yu
Legislative speaker
Our delegation of four outstanding men and women each from the Legislative Yuan will do our utmost.

In contrast with the tense standoffs in the legislature, cordiality was in full display during the meeting between Lai and Han, showing the possibilities of cross-party cooperation. After their speeches, both sides held a half-hour meeting behind closed doors, giving rise to much speculation about what the two sides discussed.

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AmCham Taiwan, researchers optimistic about Taiwan’s economy in 2025

US President-elect Donald Trump will soon take office on Jan. 20, just before Taiwan’s stock market closes for the Lunar New Year holidays. That leaves only a few days for observers to watch the initial effects of Trump 2.0 on Taiwan’s economy. Although economic prospects remain optimistic at the time being, with projected annual GDP growth at 3.22%, experts say it all depends on how exactly Trump plans to implement his proposed tariffs.

Dan Silver
AmCham Taiwan chair
Our members expressed significant amounts of confidence in the future economic growth in Taiwan, as well as their own revenue and company prospects in Taiwan for the coming 12 months and the coming three years.

The chair of Amcham Taiwan, Dan Silver says US investors in Taiwan remain optimistic of economic prospects here, despite rising cross-strait tensions. On the contrary, geopolitical shifts have prompted 17% of its members to expand operations in Taiwan.

Dan Silver
AmCham Taiwan chair
We do know that in a bilateral trade agreement, tariffs would be enshrined at a lower level in a permanent way. So I think that that’s a kind of proxy for seeing the desire for continued, unimpeded trade between the United States and Taiwan on all levels.

With Donald Trump soon to become US president, his looming tariffs may well affect Taiwan-US bilateral trade. Over 70% of AmCham members agree that a double taxation agreement between the US and Taiwan would be necessary in offsetting the increased costs.

Wang Chien-chuan
Chung-hwa Institution for Economic Research
If Trump were to apply blanket tariffs, then of course that will have a greater impact on Taiwan. But it seems like he’s starting with a 25% tariff on Mexican and Canadian goods, meaning he’s imposing tariffs in a way that gives him leverage in negotiations.

Lien Hsien-ming
Chung-hwa Institution for Economic Research
It’s hard to say whether he’ll impose the target rates at once or incrementally. Internationally speaking, IC products are almost free of taxation. We’re watching whether Trump changes this or not.

Researchers at the Chung-hwa Institution for Economic Research put Taiwan’s projected GDP growth in 2025 at 3.22% and inflation at 1.91%, which is rather optimistic. But seeing that most of the growth is driven by the tech sector, Taiwan may have to diversify its industries to de-risk under a new global order.

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Ancient Tainan fishing village launches new ecological tour boat

A new tour boat is giving visitors an up-close-and-personal encounter with the history, culture and ecology of one of Taiwan’s oldest communities. The fishing village of Sikunshen is a gem of Tainan’s South District. Its mangrove forest ecology attracts lots of visitors, as does its ancient ancestral temple, and thriving fishing industry. Now there’s a new way to enjoy all three in one afternoon. After the success of a new floating market at Sikunshen, the ecological tourism boat gives visitors a deeper dive into the unique culture.

Step on board the mangrove ecology tourism boat at Sikunshen, and you begin a voyage surrounded not just by the mangrove forest ecosystem, but also a wealth of history and culture.

The journey takes in everything from Sikunshen Fishing Harbor to the landmarks of the Port of Anping. But gasps also greet a surprise visitor: a green iguana, not a native species.

There are experiences to enjoy along the ride too. Tourists can enjoy a brief immersion into oyster cultivation on a floating deck.

Hsiao Hsiu-hua
South District chief, Tainan City
Here we can see the incredibly beautiful mangrove ecosystem of our South District, of Sikunshen.

And after the voyage through this amazing ecosystem, step off the boat and go for a stroll around the historical landmarks. It’s astonishing how rich a cultural history can be found in the tiny fishing village of Sikunshen.

Wu Chih-hsiang
Sikunshen Longshan Temple chair
This is the ancestral Qingshui Zushi Temple, the first in Taiwan. This is where Zheng Chenggong wrote his letter accepting the Dutch surrender. There are two “dragon eye” wells here, which he made. It all has great historical value.

Chen Chin-chiang
Kunshen Borough chief, Tainan City
The oysters are the most fresh and delicious here. Fishermen go out to sea to catch crabs and fish. They’re all very fresh, straight from the sea. We want to show that to all the city’s residents so everyone understands it.

The ecological tourism boat began its initial trials at the floating market, where it built up a good reputation. Now it also gives visitors a special glimpse into the past and the present of Kunshen Lake.

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If you visit Tainan for tourism, you’ll notice that many city landmarks sell official city merch featuring the local history, culture, and religion. These souvenirs translated into sales of more than NT$58 million in 2024, as visitors flocked to the city for its 400th anniversary.

Even on week days, the Chihkan Tower is packed with visitors hoping to immerse themselves in the history of Tainan. The exclusive souvenirs at the gift shop are loaded with cultural flavor, and are a must-buy for many tourists looking to take a memento home.

Visitor
They are nice and unique. It suits the local tourism vibe very well, showcasing Tainan’s highlights. You’ll definitely be happy if you take one home.

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The offerings are so diverse and creative.

Chen Hui-chun
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Last year marked 400 years since Tainan’s founding. In addition, Tainan hosted the Creative Expo Taiwan. The two events attracted a lot of visitors to Tainan’s cultural landmarks, which translated into a boost in revenue.

According to city data, Tainan’s quadricentennial celebrations and the creative expo boosted revenue from creative product sales at city landmarks to a record NT$58 million. From Cheng Gong Beer and Popcorn to Confucius Snack Noodles and Grand Matsu Milk Puffs, the snacks showcase the vibrant culture of the city through historical and religious elements. At the Chihkan Tower, the Literature God Potato Snacks become really popular during exam season.

Chen Hui-chun
Tainan Cultural Affairs Bureau
The god of literature in the Wenchang Pavilion is very effective. After their wishes are granted, the students come to leave offerings as a tribute for the god, they bring the Literature God Potato Snacks and other cultural products such as biscuits.

And the products get a redesign every now and then to celebrate special occasions. For example, to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the city walls, the city released a gift set of cakes, featuring the Great South Gate on the box aiming to capture sales for the Lunar New Year.

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