Air Pollution Control Act Amendment Sent to Second Reading; Petrochemical Association Calls for Maintaining Current Provisions

(Central News Agency, Reporter Zeng Renkai, Taipei, 9th) The amendment draft to the Air Pollution Control Act, proposed by the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) caucuses, was voted on in the Legislative Yuan at the end of May and passed to be sent directly to the second reading (a procedure bypassing committee review). In response, the Petrochemical Industry Association of Taiwan (PIAT) issued a statement on the 9th, strongly urging the Legislative Yuan to maintain the current provisions of the Air Pollution Control Act.

In its press release, the PIAT stated that while the industry supports the policy direction of improving air quality and reducing pollution, it expresses high concern over the proposed amendments to Articles 28 and 30. These articles pertain to the prohibition and restriction of fuel use for stationary pollution sources, as well as revisions to permit regulations and systems. The association argued that these changes could severely impact industrial operations, energy supply, and the investment environment, thus calling for the retention of the current legal text.

According to the PIAT, the current Article 28 mandates that fuels and auxiliary fuels used by stationary pollution sources at public and private premises, including coal or other materials designated by the central competent authority, must comply with the central authority's standards for fuel types, co-firing ratios, and composition. This aims to regulate fuel mixing ratios and components. However, the proposed amendment would grant local governments the power to prohibit or restrict the use of such fuels. The PIAT argued that since businesses already use fuels meeting central standards, allowing local governments to arbitrarily change regulations or restrict usage violates the principle of legitimate expectation and exposes companies to highly uncertain operational risks.

Furthermore, regarding Article 30, the current law stipulates that the validity period for an approved permit renewal is between 3 and 5 years. The proposed amendment shortens this to between 2 and 5 years. The PIAT believes that requiring frequent renewal applications within a short period would create a significant burden on both business operations and the reviewing authorities, hindering the efficiency of environmental governance.

Additionally, concerning permit renewal applications, the current Article 30, Paragraph 3, allows public and private premises with stationary pollution sources to continue setting up, operating, or using facilities according to the original permit content during the period between the permit's expiry and the completion of the review process.

The TPP caucus's draft amendment proposes to limit this continuation period to two months after the permit expires. If the authority fails to approve or reject the renewal within these two months, the premises would no longer be allowed to operate under the original permit. The PIAT criticized this as highly unreasonable, forcing the industry to bear the consequences of local governments failing to complete reviews in a timely manner.

The PIAT emphasized that the petrochemical industry has long supported the government's efforts in air quality improvement, carbon reduction transformation, and pollution control, and is willing to cooperate with stricter environmental requirements and technological upgrades. However, it stressed that the design of relevant laws and regulations must balance stability, feasibility, and the practical needs of the industry. Noting that the government is encouraging businesses to invest in decarbonization, AI, and high-value transformation, the PIAT warned that increased regulatory uncertainty would directly impact future corporate investment decisions and international competitiveness. It urged the Legislative Yuan to maintain the current provisions of the Air Pollution Control Act to avoid negative impacts on industrial operations, energy supply, and the investment environment. (Editor: Pan Yijing) 1150609