Nuclear Waste Management and Environmental Justice in Taiwan Mei-Fang Fan, B.A., M.A. A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Institute for Environment, Philosophy and Public Policy Lancaster University I declare that this thesis is my own work and has not been submitted in substantially the same form for the award of a higher degree elsewhere. March 2005 ProQuest Number: 11003564 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11003564 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 Acknowledgements I owe much debt to those Yami and Taiwanese who have shared their life experiences with me, participated in the focus groups or allowed me to interview them. I am deeply grateful to Bronislaw Szerszynski for his research guidance, intellectual support, helpful suggestions, inspiration, kindness and patience during the course of this research. I am thankful to Jane Hunt for her insightful comments. My grateful thanks also to John O’Neill, Allan Holland, David Littlewood, for the comments and provocative arguments that they made of the thesis or chapters at various times during the research. I would like to thank my fascinating examiners, Brian Wynne and Andrew Dobson, for their invaluable comments. Many thanks to my dear friends, in particular Chia-ling, Joyce, Ya-ling, Jeffrey, Paul, Li-ying, Daniel & Candy, and Chinese Christian Fellowship of Lancaster University (Chenyang & Yuyin, Lydia, Shuwei & Kaili, etc.). They have enriched my life and encouraged me during the last three and half years. Papers based on this research were given at: the Risk in its Social Context Conference, September 2003, Plymouth; Political Studies Association 54th Annual Conference (section: democratisation and sustainability), April 2004, Lincoln. Thanks to Derek Bell, Peter Simmons and those who raised intriguing questions on these occasions. I would like to acknowledge the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange for a year’s grant (No. DF 018-U-02). Special thanks to Kuo-Hsien who has been my intellectual companion and devoted partner during these unforgettable years in Lancaster. I would like to express my profound gratitude to my family. This thesis is dedicated, with deepest love, to my mother @J3l) and in memory of my father (?E1p ). Abstract This thesis examines environmental justice in the context of nuclear waste controversies on Orchid Island in Taiwan through the analysis of the differences between the Yami tribe and the Taiwanese migrants in their attitudes toward risks of the local nuclear waste repository and their understanding of the conception of environmental justice. The research methods adopted are focus groups research and archival analysis, supplemented by participant observation and interviews. The Orchid Island case reveals a far more intricate narrative than many of the existing literature on environmental justice, which often gives environmental justice a monodimensional interpretation and tends to view local community as homogenous. The Yami anti- nuclear waste movement manifests that problems of distribution inequity, lack of recognition and a limited participation in decision-making are interwoven in political and social processes, and disputes over nuclear waste problem between the Yami and Taiwanese groups also show the historical and socioeconomic complexity of environmental justice. The thesis concludes with the application of environmental pragmatism to environmental justice and nuclear waste dilemmas. Through a pragmatic approach, the Yami and Taiwanese environmental community could agree on ends or policies (e.g. a non-nuclear Taiwan, an improvement in monitoring the nuclear waste repository) without agreeing on ultimate values. It might help enhance mutual understanding and recognition, and facilitate intercultural alliance-building for dealing with nuclear waste problems. Contents Abstract ii Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Research questions 2 The transition to democracy 10 The diversity of Taiwan's ethnic groups 13 Nuclear policy and the anti-nuclear movement 19 Dilemmas of nuclear waste management 24 Conclusion 44 Chapter 2 Discourses on environmental justice 45 Linking environment concerns and claims for justice 46 The distributive dimension of environmental justice 50 Recognition as an element of environmental justice 54 The procedural and participatory dimension of environmental justice 60 Pluralistic notions of environmental justice 65 Conclusion 73 Chapter 3 Context and methodology 75 The sociocultural and economic background of Orchid Island 75 The Yami and Taiwanese worldviews: ecological themes 79 Key Chinese terms 85 Research methods 88 Conclusion 103 Chapter 4 Public attitudes toward the nuclear waste repository on Orchid Island 104 Local perceptions of radioactive risk 104 iii* Differing perspectives on disproportionate risk 123 The framing of risk issues and the siting conflicts 130 The disputes over compensation 137 Conclusion 145 Chapter 5 Democratic procedures, recognition and just distribution 147 Who should make the decision? 148 Is deliberative democracy biased against disadvantaged groups? 155 Recognition struggles and just distribution 164 Conclusion 177 Chapter 6 The multiple understanding of environment justice 178 The Yami and Taiwanese perspectives on environmental justice 178 The good life 180 Duty 183 Rights to life 186 Utilitarianism 190 Fairness 192 Participatory democracy 194 Social morality 196 The barriers to a coalition for environmental justice and the emerging networking of indigenous peoples 199 Conclusion 205 Chapter 7 Environmental pragmatism and intercultural dialogue over environmental justice 209 Environmental pragmatism and nuclear waste dilemmas 210 The reconstruction of a broader community: a sense of commonality 218 The convergence among a variety of environmental communities 226 Intercultural dialogue over environmental justice 233 Conclusion 245 Chapter 8 Conclusion 246 The implication for environmental justice discourses 248 Policy implications for nuclear waste management 256 The emerging transformation: the individual, the community and institutions 260 Limitations of the thesis 263 Future research 265 Bibliography 271 Appendix I: Focus Group Topic Guide 294 Appendix II: Organizations related to nuclear waste management in Taiwan 296 Appendix III: Photos of Orchid Island 298 Chapter 1 Introduction Figure 1.1 Members of the Yami tribe from Orchid Island, wearing traditional waistcoats and rattan helmets, performed an exorcism during an anti- nuclear march. Source: Taipei Times, 13/11/00. Available at http:// www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2000/11/13/61135 (last accessed 25/05/04). On 12 November 2000, tens of thousands of people marched in Taipei for a ‘green island’, appealing to the government to scrap the fourth nuclear power plant project and to make Taiwan a nuclear-free country. Diverse participants, including senior citizens, pregnant women, children, environmentalists, aboriginal groups and foreign anti-nuclear activists and tourists attended the demonstration. Activists read a joint statement in a variety of dialects, including Mandarin, Taiwanese, Hakka and aboriginal languages. Among the crowds were Yami tribesmen from Orchid Island, where Taiwan’s nuclear waste repository is sited. The Yami were waving banners proclaiming: ‘No nuke, no waste’. Wearing traditional battle gear and helmets,1 1 Traditionally, the Yami men usually wear only a loincloth because of Orchid Island’s tropical climate, and sometimes a short, double-breasted waistcoat. No shoes or other clothing was worn. Due to frequent contact with the Taiwanese society, modem clothing has been adopted. The traditional gear is worn only on special occasions. 1 members of the Yami performed an exorcism during the anti-nuclear march.2 This thesis uses the case of Orchid Island to explore how issues of environmental justice are played out in conditions of cultural diversity. What are the Yami fighting against? How do the Yami and Taiwanese people understand nuclear waste? Why is nuclear waste considered to be ‘evil ghosts’ by the Yami? What does environmental justice mean to them? Furthermore, are there any divisions within the Yami tribe as well as between the Yami and the Taiwanese people in a pluralistic society? Research questions Taiwan’s rapid economic development and the advancement of modem technology have led to ecological threats through resource extraction, spreading toxic substances and hazardous waste facilities, constructing industrial complexes, and infrastructure extension. The controversies of nuclear waste management have intensified the tension of Taiwan’s ethnic relations. Most Taiwanese low-level nuclear waste has been temporarily stored on Orchid Island, the homeland of the Yami aborigines. The Yami anti-nuclear waste movement emerged in 1987 when Taiwan transformed into a democracy. The state-run Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) has been seeking storage sites in Taiwan and abroad