Hope for the environment
Two centuries ago, a German philosopher wrote that to feel something that is good but that through habit we have become indifferent to, we should imagine that it exists no more, that we have lost it. Then, I dare to ask: if our high mountain national parks had not been established, what would be the situation for ecosystems in places such as Yushan, Taroko, Shueshan?
A new year has just begun. Last year was the International Year of The Mountains. This year is the International Year of (drinkable) Water. Both are related. In most countries, clear and clean water comes from mountain sources. The mountains and their valleys direct water into streams and rivers, and their slopes retain water that will surge through wells and springs. Mountain slopes, too, retain water and, when covered with vegetation, slow water's speed.
When crossing mountains and valleys, rainfall picks up the necessary minerals to make it more suitable for human consumption.
Taiwan is an overdeveloped and overpopulated island. Compared with Europe and Asia's mass, Taiwan is just a tiny spot in the West Pacific, but a surprising one, full of life and endowed with an amazing environment.
Why this letter? It is a letter of hope. I hope the government continues to develop national parks and creates more protected areas to preserve the nation's ecological heritage. The entire central mountain range should become a protected area. The range is not a showcase for tourism, but has a value and dignity of its own which should be respected. The best form of ecological development is simply to let nature be nature. As Lao-tze said, "Man follows earth, earth follows heaven, heaven follows tao (nature), and nature follows itself."
Again, what would be the situation of these ecosystems in national parks without protection? Each Taiwanese should ask himself this question and encourage the government to be proactive when dealing with ecology and the environment.
Finally, two points on the US model followed by Taiwan's national parks.
The US' National Parks Act of 1916 reads: "The purpose [of the National Parks Service] is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."
The US' Wilderness Act of 1964 reads: "A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain."
Today I have a dream, a dream of an environmentally sound Ilha Formosa. Maybe future generations will not need to have a dream. We are all visitors who do not remain.
Francisco Carin Garcia
Taishan, Taipei County
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