Weekly3 Taiwan Government Agrees to Halt Construction on Nuclear Plant

Taiwan Government Agrees to Halt Construction on Nuclear Plant

 TAIPEI—Taiwan's government Sunday said it would stop construction work at the island's fourth nuclear power plant to assuage growing opposition to the use of nuclear energy on the island.

Speaking to the reporters, Fan Chiang Tai-chi, spokesman for the ruling Kuomintang, said the government and the party agreed that after the safety inspection process has been completed for reactor one, it won't go into operation, but will be sealed off. Meanwhile, all work on reactor two will be halted immediately.

"The cabinet also agreed to hold a national level meeting as soon as possible to ensure the future of energy supply," Mr. Fan Chiang said.

The announcement tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Taipei this weekend demanding the government abandon nuclear energy.

"There are too many unanswered questions about the safety of nuclear power. If a nuclear disaster can happen in an advanced country like Japan who is to say it won't happen in Taiwan?" New Taipei City resident Huang Chung-liang, 43, said. Two of the country's three existing plants are located at New Taipei City and another is under construction.

The government has agreed to hold a referendum about continuing with the plant, promising no fuel rods will be inserted before the referendum. It will shut the country's three existing nuclear plants by 2025 with the under-construction plant intended for decommission by 2050, according to the Bureau of Energy. However, it maintains nuclear power is the most efficient.

Protesters argue the requirement for more than 50% of eligible voters to cast a ballot for a referendum to be valid is too much. None of six earlier referendums in Taiwan reached that threshold.

Many demonstrators Sunday said they supported antinuclear activist Lin I-hsiung who has been on hunger strike since Tuesday.

Mr. Lin, 73, was a political dissident during martial law between 1949 and 1987 and has been jailed several times for speaking out against the government.

Antinuclear sentiment in Taiwan increased after the 2011 Fukushima, Japan, disaster.

Taiwan imports more than 95% of its energy.

WHO: Mr. Fan Chiang , Huang Chung-liang, Mr. Lin,Cabinet

WHEN: Sunday

WHY: Taiwan's government Sunday said it would stop construction work at the island's fourth nuclear power plant to assuage growing opposition to the use of nuclear energy on the island.

WHERE: Taipei

HOW: Taiwanese worry about their safety because they don’t know whether the nuclear power plant will blow up.

WHAT: The government wanted to construct the forth nuclear power plant in Taiwan

assuage緩和,減輕,鎮定

reactor 反應者

seal off封閉

cabinet內閣

rods棍子,棍棒

inserted插入,鑲補

decommission使退役

cast投

Source:http://online.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304163604579527072873788850