Department of Information and Tourism, Taipei City Government

Speaking before a gathering of environmentally aware students on January 12, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin reiterated his support for the drive towards reducing energy consumption and carbon emission.
He pointed out that the city government has worked with residents to implement a number of policies such as recycling waste materials, avoiding formal suits during summer, and taking advantage of natural lighting to reduce the reliance on indoor artificial light sources. Over the past three years, these measures saved 1,000,000 KWH of electricity for city hall and cut overall resource consumption and waste generation.
In addition, the city government pointed out that an electricity-saving sweepstakes held during July and August of 2009 attracted the participation of 330,000 households. The campaign successfully reduced the city’s summertime electricity consumption by 120,000,000 KWH.
To promote the city’s achievements in this area, Taipei City Government will be organizing a showcase at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. The Taipei Pavilion at the export venue will let international visitors learn more about Taipei’s approach, including its policy of per-bag trash collection fee.
He believes that the sweet harvest of protecting our environment is worthwhile despite the pain suffered during the process. He believes that the green revolution will become a major trend in coming years and invited the students to contribute their expertise and resources to the movement.