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Wind Power News: Taiwan
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Push for more renewables may undermine Taiwan’s defense capabilities
Taiwan may find itself in a quandary over the needs to develop wind power and bolstering national defense after reports flagged wind energy infrastructure as a potential hindrance to military radar capabilities. The military has confirmed that wind turbines could interfere with the surface-to-air missile systems deployed in the northwestern coast of Taiwan. The low-frequency noise generated by the turbines is likely to affect the reflected radio waves that phased array radars need to detect signals of missiles or aircraft, . . . Complete story »
TPP calls for review of wind farm regulations
The government should consider the impact of offshore wind farms on shipping, fisheries and marine life before allowing energy developers to build more installations, Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers and experts said on Wednesday. The government plans to phase out all nuclear power generation facilities and generate 20 percent of electricity from renewable energy sources by 2025, including 5.7 gigawatts (GW) from offshore wind power. From 2026 to 2035, it plans to source an additional 15GW from offshore wind farms. . . . Complete story »
Taiwan monitors impact of Chinese wind turbine project
Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Tsai Pi-ru (蔡壁如) has expressed concern the Chinese offshore wind turbines under construction 7 nautical miles (13 kilometers) south of the Matsu Islands will affect the wellbeing of Matsu residents and the local marine environment. Tsai submitted an inquiry to the Cabinet, stating that China’s Funeng Strait Company will operate 30 Dongfang Electric Wind Power 10-megawatt wind turbines at the Changle offshore wind farm, Liberty Times reported. The site, she noted, is close to Matsu’s waters, . . . Complete story »
Wind farms to be monitored to protect animals
The government would more strictly monitor the construction of offshore wind farms to protect marine animals, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said yesterday. The government would use an automatic identification system for ships as well as other technological tools to protect the animals, it said. The developers of 24 wind farm projects have since last year begun construction on land and offshore after passing the agency’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) reviews. However, as many of the wind farms off the . . . Complete story »
Fishers vow to ‘fight to the end’ EnerVest wind farms
New Taipei City fishers vowed a “fight to the end” after Germany-based energy company EnerVest scheduled briefing sessions on its wind farm projects in the seas near Pengjia (彭佳嶼), Mianhua (棉花嶼) and Huaping (花瓶嶼) islets. EnerVest’s publicity materials showed that it plans to build 520 turbines in three wind farms of about 1,000 square kilometers near the islets of Pengjia, Mianhua and Huaping. Speaking at a local fishers’ association meeting in Wanli District (萬里), New Taipei City Councilor Pai Pei-ju . . . Complete story »
Keelung mayor opposes wind farms off northeastern Taiwan
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 . . . Complete story »
CAA reiterates opposition to wind farm off Taoyuan coast
Taiwan’s national aviation authority on Thursday reiterated its opposition to building a wind farm off the coast of Taoyuan due to concerns over flight safety at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) reiterated its position after offshore wind energy developer Wpd Taiwan Energy Co., a subsidiary of German-based Wpd AG, held a press conference earlier in the day in response to the rejection of its application to build a wind farm off the coast of Taoyuan. Representatives . . . Complete story »
Fishers from Yunlin county criticize wind turbine project
Yunlin County-based fishers yesterday called on the Wpd Taiwan Energy to build its proposed offshore wind turbines farther away from coastal fishing areas and to stop threatening local fishers. Wpd has been one of Taiwan’s major wind energy developers since it bought InfraVest Wind Power in 2016, including a projected windmill farm with 80 offshore wind turbines. The turbines would be located in waters 8 to 17km off the nation’s west coast and produce 640 megawatts (MW), the company’s Web . . . Complete story »
Stranded whales were deaf – raising more questions over offshore wind farms
As deaf whales are washed ashore in Taiwan, with hearing loss being the ‘primary reason’ for their demise, I ask the question: are stranded British whales and dolphins casualties of the offshore wind industry in this country? Practically every day brings new reports of stranded whales and dolphins around the British coast, the numbers are on the rise and nobody seems to know why. Ever expanding wind farms are beginning to dominate our coastal seas. Is there a link? I’ve . . . Complete story »
Beached whales’ hearing badly damaged: agency
DISCONCERTING FINDINGS: Scans on nine dead pygmy killer whales showed abnormal shadows in their middle ears, and they all had blackened livers. Medical examinations of several whales found that damaged hearing might be the reason they became stranded, the Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) said on Friday, adding that it would set up guidelines for training marine mammal observers to help mitigate the effects of offshore development projects. The agency late last month received successive reports that whales were stranded on . . . Complete story »
