Controversy continues over a Cabinet plan to relocate the Datan liquefied natural gas terminal project. More environmentalists came forward to criticize the relocation plan on Tuesday, even as a former EPA official gave his endorsement. Announced on Monday, the plan involves pushing the project 455 meters away from its original location. Officials say this would prevent construction from harming a nearby algal reef.

The Executive Yuan’s plan to relocate the Datan LNG terminal has won approval from some environmentalists, as well as a former EPA official.

Chan Shun-kuei
Former EPA official
The relocation plan that the government proposed yesterday can indeed be conducive to denuclearization and lowering carbon emissions, while improving air quality and ecological conservation. There are a great many environmentalist groups, and each one has its own priorities. So there is never just one voice from environmentalists. At today’s press conference, we would like to express our support for the relocation project. Our support does not mean that there is division among environmentalists.

Chuang Ping-chieh
Environmental engineering professor
I’ve been torn from the beginning, because there are good people on both sides. So why can’t they sit together to discuss the issue? That is to say, discuss the direction for Taiwan’s energy transition and how to protect the algal reef.

The former EPA official had a message for the activist leading the campaign against the LNG terminal. He said he didn’t want the issue to become a zero-sum game. He also said he would vote in favor of the current terminal project, if the referendum were not withdrawn. In response, the Rescue Datan Algal Reefs Alliance released a statement saying that it respected but disagreed with the former official’s view. It said that moving the terminal back would still impact the marine wildlife, and that moving it out of Datan was the only real solution. It said the government had not released any information on the project’s environmental impact assessments, and it emphasized the lack of transparency.

Chen Hsien-cheng
Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association
Since the people are going to be allowed to decide, you should compile all the alternative plans, including the relocation plans, and present their pros and cons. You should provide a detailed analysis, not just a simple chart.

Even as dissenting voices rang out, President Tsai Ing-wen wrote on Facebook that the government had taken stock of all the views of all the parties at stake. She asked for public support for the new proposal, which was drafted after considering all the possibilities. Meanwhile Premier Su Tseng-chang called on the activists to compromise to create a win-win situation.

Su Tseng-chang
Premier
This decision reflects our greatest sincerity, and of the greatest flexibility the power grid can afford. We look forward to our friends who insist on their relocation plan, to be more understanding, and to eventually support our new proposal, so that we can create a win-win situation.

Wang Mei-hua
Economics minister
It’s indeed the case that our relocation plan will delay completion of the LNG terminal by more than two years, and come at additional costs. But I think the plan can make everyone feel the government’s earnestness in addressing all these critical issues.

Wang said the new relocation plan would not require dredging, resolving concerns over the algal reef, while allowing Taiwan to meet its energy goals. Ahead of the referendum on the LNG terminal, officials are rushing to find ways to ease environmentalists’ fears.