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Global Challenges in Local Contexts: Governance and Its Discontents:
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Without any doubt, Taiwan has a role to play in the struggle against global warming. Its IT culture, its scientific sophistication and the vitality of its civil society are wonderful assets for becoming a model nation in Asia on the environmental area. At the same time, and as a prerequisite, Taiwan must honestly recognize that it is still not a model country when it comes to carbon emissions and other environmental issues. It certainly has achieved a lot for limiting the effects of its population density and industrial development, enacting a body of environmental legislation that is among the most advanced in the world. However, the country produces one percent of the world carbon dioxide emissions, far beyond its population share, and the per capita growth of these emissions is extremely rapid. Each Taiwanese resident produces on average about 12 metric tons of CO2 gas emissions per year, the highest per capita emission level in Asia. A few industries still disproportionally contribute to the country’s emissions. Towards the end of 2007, reacting to this situation, Nobel laureate and former Academic Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh suggested that Taiwan should aim at stabilizing the carbon dioxide emissions by 2025 at the level it was at in 2000.Therefore, Taiwan must follow international guidelines on greenhouse gas emissions control. It might also consider implementing market based instruments, such as polluting rights trading, possibly adapted from the European Emissions Trading System that largely defines international standards in the field. Concurrently, diplomatic effort would make sure that such mechanisms be recognized by the European Union and other countries. Taiwan’s efforts towards a greener developmental model will thus bear immediate international dividends. There is an additional reason for moving on this topic: the EU and other countries have already strongly hinted that, from 2012 on, they may impose import taxes on goods produced in high carbon-emitting countries. The effect on Taiwan industries could be severe if their record has not improved in the meanwhile. In other words, environmental efficiency and economic competitiveness are becoming one and the same imperative. |
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