space Press Releases, News Stories

by Chiu Yu-Tzu, Taipei Times

TAIPEI, Taiwan, U.S.A, 10 November 1999 -- The Formosa Plastics Group (FPG) said yesterday that the company is still continuing efforts to look for waste sites to dump its now-infamous mercury-contaminated waste, while France -- until recently a promising candidate for the waste -- rejected the shipment on Monday.

According to a press release from a French-based environmental group, the Centre National D'information Independante sur les Dechets (CNIID), France's Environment Ministry has confirmed that the shipment of FPG's mercury-tainted waste has been canceled.

CNIID said that the waste, produced by FPG, would have been treated for 47 million francs by TREDI, a France-based waste handler. In addition, CNIID claimed that FPG's next preferred destination was Germany.

According to a Nov. 8 news report, Alain Strebelle, deputy-director for products and waste at the French environmental ministry, confirmed that TREDI has abandoned its waste import project.

The report quoted Jean-Loup Queru, the head of TREDI's disposal plant at St Vulbas, as saying that the company had given up the plan.

TREDI's Taiwan branch, EMC environmental Engineering Ltd., refused to comment yesterday about the estimated financial loss caused by the cancelation. EMC was also unwilling to confirm that the contract with FPG had been frozen.

A manager at EMC told the Taipei Times yesterday that so far no further instructions from TREDI headquarters in France had been received.

FPG officials expressed annoyance yesterday after being contacted by the press and emphasized that no further information regarding the waste would be forthcoming.

"FPG won't get involved with the processes in other countries, when our foreign contracted waste handlers are fighting for required waste import permits from their governments," FPG spokesman Lin Sheng-kuan said.

According to the Nov. 7 news report, TREDI filed an initial request to treat around 5,000 tons of waste -- described in customs documents as "construction waste" -- and a request to dispose of another 5,000 tons was expected later.

Lin said the quota of waste on the import application was filed by TREDI and "FPG had nothing to do with that."

Although the waste was removed from Cambodia under intense media scrutiny and rejected by a US firm, Lin said that FPG is still looking for either local or overseas sites to treat the waste.

However, while Lin refused to confirm whether Germany would be the next destination for the waste, environmentalists in Germany are already making plans to halt any shipment there.

Andreas Bernstorff, an activist from Greenpeace in Germany, told the Taipei Times by phone yesterday that the scheme to treat and dispose of 4,600 tons of waste from FPG in Germany might be canceled.

FPG's waste shipment has become more controversial not only for its composition, but also due to arguments over Taiwan's political status. Environmentalists in Europe argue that Beijing has no authority to monitor exports from Taiwan.

Under the circumstances, they said, it is impossible for Beijing to be recognized as the competent authority over Taiwan, despite terms of the Basel Convention, to which China -- and not Taiwan -- is a party.

The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal was adopted in Basel, Switzerland in March 1989. The Convention was initiated in response to numerous international scandals regarding hazardous waste trafficking that began in the late 1980s.

Bernstorff said that authorities in Germany had told her that they would respect the terms of the Basel Convention and therefore they would issue an import permit based on what they said was "Taiwan's acknowledgement" that they recognized Beijing's authority.

"I think this is wrong," said Bernstorff. "First of all, a Baselcompliant authority must always be in a position to be able to control all activities and waste affairs of a company that wishes to export. This is obviously not the case. Secondly, Beijing is not in Taiwan," Bernstorff said.

FPG adjusted its strategy in August to import the controversial waste to its factory site in Mailiao, Yunlin County, but later changed the destination to Jenwu, Kaohsiung County. Residents near both sites protested because FPG had failed to provide information about the composition of the waste.