2023-04-19
Last year, Taiwan’s National Development Council published the “Taiwan’s Pathway to Net-zero Emissions by 2050” and “12 Key Strategies” to respond the trends of 2050 net-zero goals that have been committed by many economies in the world. Based on the targets and strategies, Taiwan’s Industrial Development Bureau also proposed “Net-zero Transition Pathway of Industrial Sector by 2030” to further explain its short- and medium-term plans to drive industrial decarbonization. It is true that the Taiwanese government has made some progress regarding climate policy planning, but it is not sufficient to ensure that Taiwan meets the climate pledges. The biggest problem may be that the “12 Key Strategies” do not have a coherent action plan to decarbonize industrial sector nor innovative policy tools to encourage hard-to-abate industries to adopt low-carbon technologies — despite they produce around 40% of the country’s emissions. Instead of an ambitious industrial plan, measures to cut emissions […]
2023-01-31
Published on 31/01/2023, 4:35pm Comment: Taiwan’s industry is responsible for more than half of its emissions but the government’s new climate policies have no specific plan to tackle them. Youth climate activists took to the streets of Taipei in September 2020 (Picture: Li-Wen Chang/Taiwan Youth Climate Coalition) By Chia-Wei Chao and Benjamin Yang When Taiwan makes climate headlines, it’s usually only because of the nation’s impact on the US and China’s climate talks. But the island is important in its own right too. It is the 22nd biggest emitter in the world and is highly at risk from storms and sea level rise. Taiwan’s government has made two big moves on climate recently, but these might not guarantee success unless the country cleans up its biggest source of emissions: industry. Key moves First, on December 28, it allocated US$30 billion for climate investments up to 2030. DR Congo delays rainforest oil auctions Known as the 12 key strategies, this […]
2022-12-20
This press release first appeared in the Green Citizens’ Action Alliance on 12/20/2022, and is translated into English and republished here. · 80% (1300+) of Taiwanese publicly-listed companies do not set GHG reduction targets. Even companies with climate goals do not show enough climate ambitions (e.g. Only planning to reduce 20% of carbon emissions by 2030.) · Only 2.7% (47) of publicly-listed companies have committed to 2050 net-zero targets. · Most companies do not have credible climate strategies nor disclose scope 3 emissions, which is not aligned with the criteria of the ‘Integrity Matters’ report published by the United Nations’ High-Level Expert Group at COP27. · To increase the quantity and quality of disclosed climate targets and plans, the Taiwanese authority should develop more ambitious policy instruments, such as corporate sustainability reporting standards, carbon footprint labels for specific products, and low-carbon procurement for public construction. In December 2022, five environmental non-governmental organizations […]
