A nature reserve will be established around the historic Alangyi Trail that stretches from Taitung County to Pingtung County, saving the 12km-long Pacific coastline hiking trail from the threat posed by the planned construction of Provincial Highway No. 26.
A Pingtung County Government review committee yesterday designated 841.3 hectares of public land from Syuhai (旭海) to Cape Guanyin (觀音鼻) in Pingtung a nature reserve, meaning road construction would not be allowed in the area, in line with the Cultural Heritage Preservation Act (文化資產保留法).
The trail runs from Taitung County’s Nantian Village (南田) to Syuhai Village (旭海) in Pingtung.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
Since last year, thousands of environmental protection groups and activists have been urging the government to abandon the road plan to protect the last 1 percent of natural coastline remaining in Taiwan, which is along the Alangyi trail, saying the area is home to a rich natural ecology with many species of animals and plants, including the endangered green sea turtle.
To date, 944 civic groups and 61,040 people have signed a petition calling for the road construction to be stopped.
Yesterday morning, hundreds of activists sat outside the Pingtung County Government building, holding banners in support of a nature reserve to preserve the trail and its surroundings.
“We’ve come here to tell the review committee that Taiwan is fed up with concrete tetrapods and coastal groins,” said Hung Hui-hsiang (洪輝祥), chairman of the Pingtung Environmental Protection Union.
However, many people also favor the road because of the economic development it could bring to the area.
Some lawmakers, along with hundreds of local residents, held a counter-protest outside the county building. They held up signs reading “illegal review,” saying the residents’ opinions were being neglected and that they supported the construction of the road.
Construction work was held back over the past year by the Pingtung County Government’s designation of a temporary nature reserve.
The area’s natural landscape would be irreversiblely destroyed by road construction, Pingtung County Deputy Commissioner Chung Chia-pin (鍾佳濱) said after the meeting.
“After examining the information gathered from nearly one year of investigation on the area’s natural environment, the committee has agreed to designate the area a natural reserve,” he said.
Chung said any attempt to modify the reserve’s boundaries or terminate the county’s designation of the area as a nature reserve would also have to go through the same review process.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS