Miaoli Dapeng Wind Turbine Update Passes Initial Environmental Review, Committee Suggests Removing 4 Turbines in Wetland
The Miaoli Dapeng wind farm's turbine update project passed its initial environmental review after supplementary revisions. The developer reduced the plan from 18 to 16 turbines to mitigate environmental impact. However, environmental committee members proposed considering the removal of four turbines within the Xihu Wetland, citing concerns for leopard cats and migratory birds. The Ministry of Environment clarified that the wind farm was included in the wetland area after the Wetland Conservation Act came into effect.
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- 📰 Published: April 15, 2026 at 18:03
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Taipei, April 15 (CNA) The Miaoli Houlong Dapeng wind turbines, which began commercial operation in 2006, recently proposed an update and reconstruction plan to reduce 5 units and update 16 units. The third preliminary environmental review was conducted today. Although the environmental committee agreed to pass it after supplementary revisions, they also suggested that the developer evaluate dismantling the four wind turbines within the Xihu Wetland.
The Ministry of Environment today convened the third preliminary review meeting of the special project team for the "Dapeng Wind Farm Wind Turbine Update and Reconstruction Project Environmental Impact Statement."
The developer for this project is Miaoli Wind Power Co., Ltd., which plans to update and reconstruct 16 of the original 21 wind turbines located in the coastal area of Houlong Township, Miaoli County. Each turbine unit will have a capacity of approximately 3 to 5 megawatts (MW), with a total installed capacity of about 48 to 80 MW. Construction includes dismantling existing turbines, site leveling, tower foundations, turbine assembly, and updating and burying transmission lines, with an estimated construction period of about 18 months.
After the previous two preliminary review meetings, the developer stated that the original plan to update 18 turbines was reduced to updating 16 turbines, excluding units 14, 18, 19, 20, and 21 from the update plan, to reduce overall environmental impact and respond to local expectations.
The Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association stated that the size of the new turbine blades and the height of the turbines will at least increase by 1.5 to 2 times, but the assessment of noise and glare claims that it "may decrease or have almost no impact," which is unreasonable. They suggested that the actual noise and glare generated during operation should be assessed based on the disturbance to residents' lives, and a systematic analysis should be conducted on residents' complaints about declining quality of life.
Environmental committee members echoed the association's remarks, believing that the noise baseline should be the natural ambient sound, not the background value under the operation of existing turbines. In addition, environmental monitoring results should be regularly published, and specific standard operating procedures should be developed for responding to resident feedback and abnormal environmental impact incidents.
The environmental committee mentioned that this project is located in an area with a high density of leopard cats, and more proactive leopard cat conservation measures and habitat compensation plans should be developed and implemented, along with more systematic ecological monitoring. After internal discussions, it was recommended that this project pass the preliminary review after supplementary revisions and be submitted to the Environmental Impact Assessment Committee for review.
Some turbines in this project are located within the Xihu Important Wetland. An environmental committee member noted that birds fly back and forth between the sea and vegetated areas to forage, and wind turbines in Changhua and Yunlin have already been observed to restrict bird migration and activity. Therefore, it was suggested to evaluate dismantling turbines 1 to 4 located within the Xihu Wetland area and not proceed with their update and reconstruction.
The Ministry of Environment further explained that since the Dapeng wind farm units were installed in 2006, they were included in the newly designated wetland area after the Wetland Conservation Act came into effect in 2015. Therefore, the developer has simultaneously submitted the wetland-related parts to the National Park Service of the Ministry of the Interior for review. Currently, the developer is supplementing documents, and the process has not yet been completed. (Editor: Li Heng-shan) 1150415
The Ministry of Environment today convened the third preliminary review meeting of the special project team for the "Dapeng Wind Farm Wind Turbine Update and Reconstruction Project Environmental Impact Statement."
The developer for this project is Miaoli Wind Power Co., Ltd., which plans to update and reconstruct 16 of the original 21 wind turbines located in the coastal area of Houlong Township, Miaoli County. Each turbine unit will have a capacity of approximately 3 to 5 megawatts (MW), with a total installed capacity of about 48 to 80 MW. Construction includes dismantling existing turbines, site leveling, tower foundations, turbine assembly, and updating and burying transmission lines, with an estimated construction period of about 18 months.
After the previous two preliminary review meetings, the developer stated that the original plan to update 18 turbines was reduced to updating 16 turbines, excluding units 14, 18, 19, 20, and 21 from the update plan, to reduce overall environmental impact and respond to local expectations.
The Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association stated that the size of the new turbine blades and the height of the turbines will at least increase by 1.5 to 2 times, but the assessment of noise and glare claims that it "may decrease or have almost no impact," which is unreasonable. They suggested that the actual noise and glare generated during operation should be assessed based on the disturbance to residents' lives, and a systematic analysis should be conducted on residents' complaints about declining quality of life.
Environmental committee members echoed the association's remarks, believing that the noise baseline should be the natural ambient sound, not the background value under the operation of existing turbines. In addition, environmental monitoring results should be regularly published, and specific standard operating procedures should be developed for responding to resident feedback and abnormal environmental impact incidents.
The environmental committee mentioned that this project is located in an area with a high density of leopard cats, and more proactive leopard cat conservation measures and habitat compensation plans should be developed and implemented, along with more systematic ecological monitoring. After internal discussions, it was recommended that this project pass the preliminary review after supplementary revisions and be submitted to the Environmental Impact Assessment Committee for review.
Some turbines in this project are located within the Xihu Important Wetland. An environmental committee member noted that birds fly back and forth between the sea and vegetated areas to forage, and wind turbines in Changhua and Yunlin have already been observed to restrict bird migration and activity. Therefore, it was suggested to evaluate dismantling turbines 1 to 4 located within the Xihu Wetland area and not proceed with their update and reconstruction.
The Ministry of Environment further explained that since the Dapeng wind farm units were installed in 2006, they were included in the newly designated wetland area after the Wetland Conservation Act came into effect in 2015. Therefore, the developer has simultaneously submitted the wetland-related parts to the National Park Service of the Ministry of the Interior for review. Currently, the developer is supplementing documents, and the process has not yet been completed. (Editor: Li Heng-shan) 1150415