By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterPeople should have the freedom to breathe fresh air, just as they have the freedoms of speech and assembly, environmental group Air Clean Taiwan said on Thursday, as it prepared to stage an annual march against air pollution in Taipei tomorrow. The event is to begin at noon in front of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) and march toward Liberty Square (自由廣場), the group said. In a democratic nation, people should have equal rights to breathe fresh air, but residents of central and southern Taiwan often suffer from worse air quality, he said. Economic development is important, but officials should think about the environment they want to leave to future generations, National Federation of Teachers’ Unions president Chang Hsu-cheng (張旭政) said, adding that the federation would galvanize teachers for a long-term fight for fresh air. The nation’s yearly average concentration of PM2.5 has declined from 24 micrograms per cubic meter in 2013 to 16.2 last month, EPA data showed.
