王吉娜實習日誌06: 核電廠

核電廠

    在台灣東北海岸，有一座核電廠自1999年起就矗立在海灘上。儘管該電站的建設工程早在2014年就已結束，但在過去近三十年裡，這座廢棄建築見證了這片海灘的沙子年復一年地不斷流失。福隆海灘（Fulong Beach）不僅是許多當地人的家園，也是舉辦各類珍惜社區活動的場所，如今其寬度已不到上世紀80年代時的一半。 6月30日，我們與幾位長期記錄並調查這一沙灘流失現象的當地倡導者，以及前來商討如何依據調查結果採取後續行動的政府官員，共同開會討論了這片海灘與該核電站的未來。電站前方建有一座碼頭，最初用於運送建設所需的材料；然而，倡導者指出，該海域原本風浪就極為強勁，而這座碼頭改變了波浪的流向，使海浪以更強的力量回沖至海灘，從而加速了沙子的侵蝕。他們也提到，一處名為「馬島」(Horse Island）的岩層以及數座沙丘也已崩塌消失。

    據當地倡議者稱，負責建造該電站的台灣電力公司（台電）發布的研究報告和聲明中存在相互矛盾的訊息。當地社區成員也指出，台電隱瞞了發現一處距今4400年歷史的古代冶煉遺址的事實，並將其重新掩埋。此外，他們也掩埋了鹽寮溪（Yanliao River）的一處舊河道，向珍文溪（Zhenwen River）傾倒廢棄物，並破壞了墓地。至少有四人因在電站附近海域遭遇強浪，船隻撞上電站建築後沉沒而喪生。政府官員對當地倡議者的訴求持開放態度，並表示希望妥善解決電站引發的問題，同時避免此事演變成黨派之間引發分裂的政治議題。後來我親自去了海灘，便明白了倡導者所言之意：當你向水中走去時，海床在最初幾米內保持淺水狀態，隨後突然急劇變深至齊腰深度——這種地形我在其他海灘上並不常見。

The Nuclear Power Plant

    On the northeastern coast of Taiwan, there's been a nuclear power plant that sits on the beach since 1999. For almost the past three decades, even though the construction for this plant has long since ended in 2014, this abandoned building has also watched the sand of this beach disappear continuously year after year. Fulong Beach, which is home to many locals and dearly held community events, is now less than half as wide as it used to be in the 80s. On the 30th of June, we sat in a meeting discussing the future of this beach and this power plant with a number of local advocates who’ve been documenting and investigating this disappearance, and with government officials who’ve come to discuss the details of how to proceed with the evidence of this investigation. The pier built in front of the power plant was originally used to import construction materials to build the structure, but the advocates claim that this area already had extremely strong waves, and that the pier now redirects the waves back stronger over the beach and accelerates erosion of the sand. They also pointed to a rock formation called Horse Island as well as several dunes have also collapsed and disappeared. 

    Taipower, who were responsible for building the plant, has apparently released research reports and statements with conflicting information, according to the local advocates. According to the local community members, Taipower has also hidden the fact that they uncovered a 4,400 year old ancient smelting site, in which they buried again. They also buried an old channel of the Yanliao River, dumped waste into the Zhenwen River, and damaged gravesites. At least four people have died out in the waves by the plant, crashed into the structure, and sank. The government officials were receptive to the local advocates’ complaints, and they said they wanted to make sure they addressed the issue caused by the plant without it becoming a divisive political issue between parties. I went down later to the beach, and I could understand what the advocates meant. The further you walk out into the water, the beach stays shallow for several meters until it suddenly dips into waist deep water, which I don’t think I’ve encountered very often on a beach.