English
AmCham, in support of President Tsai Ing-wen’s net-zero carbon emissions goals, was proud to link virtually to COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, where Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) Deputy Minister Shen Chih- hsiu urged cooperation between public and private sectors to tackle climate issues – something AmCham’s members are primed to support. Our commitment goes beyond Taiwan’s central governmental authorities, as demonstrated by AmCham Taiwan’s April 2022 signature on the Voluntary Local Review Declaration for Cities.
Our 2021 White Paper advocated for decarbonization, energy storage, and carbon capture, as well as adoption of carbon fees and credits. The Committee thanks the Taiwanese government for supporting our recommendations for implementing carbon neutral policies, such as introducing a carbon tax on largescale emitters. The EPA last autumn proposed such a tax, and the Executive Yuan followed up this April by approving a differential pricing scheme for enterprises, expected to go into effect in 2024 or 2025. The measures now go to the Legislative Yuan as amendments to the former Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Management Act, which is to be renamed the Climate Change Response Act. The Committee commends the government for its decisive actions to deal with this important challenge, and below offers some additional recommendations for reaching the objective of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Our other suggestion this year is to provide more incentives to industry to utilize recycled plastics and other projects to capitalize on the circular economy.
The SDG Committee also appreciates the promotional support of AmCham at the Chamber level for the implementation of sustainable development projects and initiatives. These include: (1) support for the first privately owned waste-to-energy project in Taiwan to receive a feed- in tariff under the Renewable Energy Development Act; (2) a new renewable energy development platform backed by U.S. capital; and (3) a carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) industry alliance. For example, AmCham has been a strong supporter of the newly created Taiwan-U.S. CCUS Industries Alliance and participated in the recent Carbon Neutral and CCUS Forum. In the firm belief that public- private partnerships (PPPs) are the most effective means of achieving results in SDG and other areas, the Chamber urges the Bureau of Energy (BOE) and Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) to actively engage with the Alliance to enable it to become a genuine PPP.
Suggestion 1: Promote decarbonization technologies to help achieve Taiwan’s 2050 net-zero emissions goal.
The SDG Committee joins the Energy Committee in calling attention to the crucial challenge for Taiwan of meeting its stated goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Although Taiwan has been excluded from many international agreements, the decarbonization effort is important to demonstrating its commitment to being a good international citizen, as well as to ensure that Taiwanese products continue to be welcomed in foreign markets as other governments implement stricter regulations to safeguard the environment.
Various decarbonization technologies are available that could help Taiwan to meet the 2050 net-zero emissions target while ensuring reliable and competitively priced energy. These include carbon capture and storage and the use of renewable hydrogen and low-emission fuels. Taiwan must ensure that it has that it has put a supportive policy and regulatory/legal framework in place so that these technologies can compete on a level playing field. In addition, incentives should be increased to help expand the scope and quicken the pace of existing programs to develop renewable energy resources. We agree with the Energy Committee that the authorities could facilitate this process by sponsoring regular opportunities for communication among all relevant stakeholders, including government, industry, scholars, and community representatives. The members of the new CCUS Alliance call for MOST and BOE to join its promising campaign and convert it from a private undertaking to a vigorous private- public partnership.
Suggestion 2: Incentivize industries to use recycled plastics.
Starting this year, the recycled plastic material rPET is expected to be used, manufactured, and sold as food containers through the risk assessment process of the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA). Currently, nearly 50% of all plastic waste in Taiwan is recycled, of which 90% is sourced from food containers.
This plastic waste will now be turned into a useful resource for the circular economy. The increased utilization of rPET is also expected to reduce the manufacture and use of virgin plastic and accelerate the reduction of plastic waste. As the demand for plastics remains difficult to decrease, reducing carbon emissions in the production of plastics can help achieve the goal of carbon net-neutrality.
The Committee believes that providing appropriate incentives to those who use recycled plastics, such as providing carbon credits and deducting or waiving carbon taxes or fees, will make the industry more willing to use climate-friendly materials despite the sometimes-higher prices than for regular plastics. Additionally, as recycling PET/ rPET transforms simple waste into raw materials for the circular economy, the Recycling and Processing Fee currently charged against manufacturers and importers should also be appropriately reduced or exempted.
Chinese
台灣美國商會支持蔡英文總統的凈零碳排目標，去年亦有幸參與於蘇格蘭格拉斯哥（Glasgow）舉行的聯合國氣候變化大會（COP26）。會中，行政院環境保護署（EPA）常務副署長沈志修呼籲透過公私合作，解決氣候問題，美國商會成員也全力支持此理念。我們努力的方向不侷限於政府現行政策，正如商會於今年4月簽署《新北宣言》，重申我們支持永續發展的決心。
商會於《2021台灣白皮書》中，提倡減碳、能源儲存和碳捕捉，同時亦倡議徵收碳費和引進碳權機制。委員會感謝政府支持本會落實減碳策略的建議，例如對排碳大戶課徵碳稅。去年秋天，環保署提出該種稅賦，行政院在今年4月跟進，批准企業碳費差別費率，預計將在2024年或2025年生效。行政院已將《溫室氣體減量及管理法》修正草案送交立法院，更名為《氣候變遷因應法》。委員會讚揚政府果斷應對重要挑戰，並提出以下其他建議，以達成2050年凈零碳排的目標。委員會今年亦企盼政府為企業訂定更多獎勵措施，促進塑膠回收再利用與其他專案，充分運用循環經濟的優勢。
委員會也銘謝台灣美國商會積極倡導永續發展政策，包括 1）輔助台灣首個私營的廢棄物發電計畫獲得《再生能源發展條例》保障的上網電價補貼 2）支持運用美國資金發展的可再生能源發展平台 3）協助碳捕捉、再利用與封存技術（CCUS）產業組成聯盟。舉例而言，商會持續堅定支持新成立的台美碳捕捉、再利用與封存（CCUS）產業推動聯盟，並於近日參與「碳中和及CCUS論壇」。商會堅信公私夥伴關係是達成永續發展目標最有效的方式。有鑑於此，商會敦促經濟部能源局和科技部積極與聯盟合作，建立完善的公私合作。
建議一：推廣減碳技術，實現2050年凈零排放目標
永續發展委員會與能源委員會共同呼籲關注台灣於2050年前實現凈零碳排放的挑戰。雖然台灣被排除在多項國際協議外，致力於減碳依然十分重要，不僅能展示台灣成為世界公民的決心，亦可確保台灣的商品在環保法規越趨嚴格的國際市場受到認可。
台灣可以運用市面上多元的減碳技術，在達成2050年淨零碳排目標的同時，也確保可靠的能源供應以及具市場競爭力的價格。相關技術包含碳捕捉和封存，以及使用綠色氫能和低碳排燃料。台灣必須確保完善的政策和監管暨法律框架，創造公平競爭的環境。此外，政府應增加獎勵誘因，擴大並加速現有計劃，以開發可再生能源。永續發展委員會支持能源委員會的建議，企盼政府持續推動永續發展，支持利害關係人間的定期溝通，包括政府、企業、學者和地方代表。新成立的台美碳捕捉、再利用與封存（CCUS）產業推動聯盟成員也呼籲科技部與經濟部能源局共同參與，透過積極公私協力，共創永續發展願景。
建議二：透過合理獎勵措施，促進產業使用再生塑膠
2022年開始，通過食品藥物管理署風險評估程序之再生聚乙烯對苯二甲酸酯（rPET），可望能製成食品容器並於市面上發售。目前，台灣回收的廢塑料中聚乙烯對苯二甲酸酯(PET)占比達到近50%，而其中90%來自於食品容器。
塑膠廢棄物將成為循環經濟的有利資源，運用再生聚乙烯對苯二甲酸酯（rPET）等再生塑膠能降低原生塑膠的製造與使用，並減少塑膠垃圾。鑒於現階段社會一時難以降低對塑膠的需求，減少生產過程碳排放有助於實現碳中和的目標。
委員會認為，政府應提供使用再生塑料企業適當的獎勵措施，例如提供碳權額度及減免碳稅與碳費。儘管環保材料往往比普通塑膠原料昂貴，此舉將增加業者使用對環境友善材料的意願。此外，回收PET與rPET能將廢棄物轉化為循環經濟原物料，因此，現行環保署向製造商和進口商稽徵的相對應回收處理費，也應適度調低或予以免除。
