November 23, 2020
Taiwan

Keelung mayor opposes wind farms off northeastern Taiwan

By Wang Chao-yu and Lee Hsin-Yin | CNA | 11/22/2020 | focustaiwan.tw

Keelung Mayor Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) said Sunday he is against a possible offshore wind farm project in waters off northeastern Taiwan overseen by the city, calling the region an important nature reserve and fishing ground.

“Don’t ever think about it. I’m against it,” he said on his Facebook page after local media reported that a foreign energy developer wants to set up a 300-square-kilometer wind farm around the islets of Pengjia, Huaping and Mianhua.

Lin said the three volcanic islets are not only rich in marine resources, which local fishermen depend on heavily, but also an important breeding ground for migratory birds.

Among them, Huaping and Mianhua islets were designated as wildlife refuges in 1996, he said.

Lin was reacting to news that EnerVest Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of German InfraVest Group, is said to be attempting to launch offshore wind power in the area, which has prompted an outcry from academia and the fishing industry.

The mayor said the city has not been notified by the developer about the project, which reportedly is undergoing an environmental impact assessment.

The group has invested 500 million euros (US$592 million) in Taiwan and developed wind parks and photovoltaic power stations with 400 megawatts of installed capacity since coming to Taiwan in 2000.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2020/11/23/keelung-mayor-opposes-wind-farms-off-northeastern-taiwan/