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Taiwan Posts Debit of NT$74.32B. in Green Accounting in 2012

2014/02/12 | By Judy Li

In 2012 Taiwan witnessed a loss of NT$74.32 billion (US$2.48 billion) in natural resource depletion referring to profits derived from excessive exploitation of groundwater, gravel and mining resources as well as environmental quality degradation referring to maintenance and treatment costs in preventing air, water, and waste pollutions, according to the Green Accounting compiled by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting & Statistics (DGBAS).

The said loss reportedly equaled to the construction cost of one and one-third Taipei 101 skyscraper. Compared to 2011, the loss referring to excessive exploitation of oil and gas reserves increased by nearly 10% to NT$19.4 billion (US$646.67 million) in 2012, a new 7-year high.

In 2012 the annual growth of Taiwan's Green Accounting stood at 2.71%, exceeding its economic growth of 1.48% in the same year and implying the reduction in environmental pollution and the improvement in the efficient use of resources. Besides, the ratio of such loss to the island's GDP dropped to 0.53% from 2005's 0.76%. (JL)

Debit Entries to Taiwan's Green Accounting 2005-2012       Unit: NT$B.
Year

Loss caused by natural resource depletion

Loss caused by environmental quality degradation

Total

2005

19.554

70.159

89.713

2006

18.575

70.118

88.693

2007

18.578

69.163

87.741

2008

18.073

66.175

84.248

2009

17.602

61.339

78.941

2010

18.193

61.611

79.804

2011

17.686

57.874

75.56

2012

19.385

54.942

74.327

Source: DGBAS