Taipei: Several environmental groups have jointly proposed a draft bill to regulate how sites are to be selected for storing high-level radioactive waste and urged Tuesday at a press conference that it be taken up quickly by lawmakers.
According to Focus Taiwan, Tsui Shu-hsin, secretary-general of the Green Citizens' Action Alliance, emphasized that the storage facilities holding nuclear waste at nuclear power plants are full, and the dry cask storage systems have a service life of only 40 years. With no long-term solution in place for high-level radioactive waste, Tsui highlighted the urgent need for prompt legislation to address this growing threat.
Taiwan, which previously relied on nuclear power for a significant portion of its energy, has transitioned to sourcing about 85 percent of its electricity from fossil fuels. Past efforts to designate a permanent disposal site for high-level nuclear waste have faced significant public opposition. In 2012, geological drilling conducted by the state-run Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower) in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, raised suspicions of scouting for a nuclear waste site. Although Taipower claimed it was general geological research, similar undisclosed activities occurred in Kinmen in 2013, leading to public backlash over transparency issues. A 2022 Control Yuan report indicated no progress in identifying a suitable disposal site.
Chang Yu-yin, an executive director of the Environmental Jurists Association (EJA), explained that the proposed bill aims to provide comprehensive procedures to encourage public participation and facilitate site selection. The proposal outlines four stages: policymaking, potential candidate sites, suggested candidate sites, and final disposal sites. It emphasizes open information, civil participation, and prioritizes volunteer locations that could receive compensation up to NT$10 billion (US$343.97 million). The process includes a meeting platform for informed consent from residents of selected sites.
Chang further detailed that the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) would serve as the competent authority, with the Nuclear Safety Commission acting as the regulatory authority. An incorporated administrative "radioactive waste management center" would be established as the enforcement authority to ensure separation of powers.
A social media post by the EJA mentioned that several groups had spent over three years collaborating with scholars, other organizations, the Energy Administration, and Taipower to finalize the draft bill. Ho Yu-jung, Secretary-General of the Taiwan Obasang Political Equality Party, also called for swift legislative action, emphasizing the proposal's comprehensive regulation of the site selection process, local participation, and oversight of government responsibilities.
At the press event, Green Party Taiwan Co-convener Kan Chung-wei urged the Legislature to review the draft bill to enable democratic procedures over political manipulation. The MOEA had set up a project management office in April 2025 to propose a draft act on selecting final sites for radioactive waste disposal facilities. The draft bill is scheduled for Cabinet review at the end of the year.