By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporterReview of a Yangmingshan development plan is to be halted for upcoming changes in the law, Taipei Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Liou Ming-lone (劉銘龍) said yesterday, drawing criticism from one official who said the department was shirking its responsibility. The plan, which covers 335.5 hectares in Yangmingshan, began in 1979 when the Taipei City Government changed the land categories of 25 reservations into residential development areas. “Residential development on the hills of Taipei will not require an environmental impact assessment,” Liou said, adding that any resolution by the committee would be subverted once the law is passed. “If you [the city government] are going to protect the reservations, you should not open them for urban development,” he said. “The commission can decide whether the residence areas should be changed back into reservations,” he added in an interview yesterday.

Source: Taipei Times May 19, 2017 16:04 UTC