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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 CWA to cut back on quake alert project
Seismology Center Director Chen Kuo-chang, center, points to a map depicting planned undersea cables during a briefing to Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai, left, in Taipei on July, 20, 2021. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications
SETBACK: The agency blamed global inflation and difficulties in recruiting a contractor for its downsizing of the project, which would be delayed until 2028
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
The Central Weather Administration （CWA） yesterday confirmed that the length of an undersea cable it plans to build off southern Taiwan would be reduced from 800km to 200km due to a funding shortfall caused by inflation, adding that decreasing the project’s scale would cut earthquake and tsunami warning times.
The project, initiated by the state-run meteorology agency in 2020, was to install a 800km-long undersea cable from Pingtung County’s Fangshan Township （枋山） to the Philippines’ Luzon Island to enable the CWA to better observe seismic activities in the Manila Trench.
Historic records show that magnitude 8 earthquakes occur approximately every 200 years in the trench, while the cycle for magnitude 8.5 temblors was about 350 years. The last major quake recorded in the trench was about 400 years ago.
Should a large earthquake occur in the trench, it could generate tsunami waves of 10m to 15m in Luzon and about 7m in Taiwan’s Hengchun Peninsula （恆春半島）, based on simulation results, the administration said.
Severe damage would be expected in Taiwan’s southern and southwestern regions as well, it added.
The four-year project, which is to be completed this year, is jointly funded by Taiwan and the Philippines. The funding was previously estimated to top NT$2.6 billion （US$82.13 million）, with the cost covering the construction of the 800km-long undersea cable and six submarine earthquake and tsunami observation units along the route.
Once finished, it was expected to provide an early warning of about 10 to 20 seconds after an earthquake occurs to alert the public of secondary seismic waves.
It could also provide people 30 minutes to an hour to prepare for a potential tsunami, the agency said.
However, CWA Administrator Cheng Chia-ping （程家平） told lawmakers in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee that the agency is experiencing a funding shortage for the project due to global inflation, and it has so far failed eight times to recruit a contractor.
Meanwhile, it has downsized the project by reducing the length of the undersea cable to 200km and decreasing the number of submarine observation units to three, Cheng said.
Following the changes, the estimated early warning time after an earthquake would be about 14 seconds, while the warning time for a tsunami would be about 30 minutes, he said.
Because of the delay in recruiting a contractor, the completion date has been postponed to 2028, he added.
The estimated funding of the four-year project has slightly increased to NT$2.7641 billion, although the administration might have to budget NT$4 billion to meet the rising operating costs.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Kun-tse （李昆澤） said he was “very dissatisfied” with the changes to the project.
“Do you have any idea how many people could be saved in 10 seconds?” Lee said.
The reduction in the early earthquake warning time could be compensated for through the nation’s disaster prevention system, Cheng said, adding that people usually have more time to respond to tsunamis.
Deputy Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Kuo-hsien （林國顯） said his ministry would re-evaluate the project and try to find additional funding for it.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
