TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Protesters clashed with police Tuesday (Sept. 23) during a heated environmental assessment meeting organized by the local Environmental Protection Bureau (南投縣環保局) for a proposed waste incinerator in Nantou County. Environmental groups and residents opposed the project in Mingjian Township (名間鄉), which aims to address the county's reliance on external waste management facilities.
Nantou County currently lacks an incinerator, prompting officials to propose a waste-to-energy center in Xinmin Village (新民村). Township head Chen Han-li (陳翰立) criticized holding the assessment meeting in distant Zhongxing New Village (中興新村). Chen argued the location choice disrespects local residents and questions the site selection rationale.
Tea farmers in Mingjian Township fear the incinerator will damage air, water, and soil quality, harming their crops and Nantou's tea industry. Environmental Protection Bureau director Li I-shu (李易書) said the project will advance to second-phase evaluation if assessments proceed smoothly. Officials plan to hold a public hearing during the next phase.
Li presented fumigation test data showing no significant effects on tea leaves during the meeting. The bureau director emphasized emission standards for the Nantou project would exceed those at Taipei City's Muzha incinerator. Li explained first-phase assessments focus on background data while second-phase evaluations involve detailed pollution investigations.
