COA files lawsuit over Lishan blaze

The Council of Agriculture (COA) has filed a civil lawsuit demanding more than NT$100 million in compensation from a farmer and his employee convicted of negligence over a forest fire in central Taiwan's Lishan (梨山) area.

On Feb. 11, Lin Chien-fung (林建風), a worker hired by fruit farmer Chen Kuang-yen ( 陳光煙), accidentally set some grass on fire while using a gas-soldering tool to connect water pipes. The ensuing fire destroyed 80 hectares of national forests and caused damage estimated at NT$105.8 million.

Yesterday, the Taichung District Court, citing violations of the Forestry Law (森林法), sentenced Lin, 30, and Chen, 45, to either two months in prison or a fine. Though the pair were found guilty of negligence, the fact that they assisted with fire-fighting efforts was taken into account by the court.

But the forestry management department in Tungshih, under the COA's Taiwan Forestry Bureau (林務局), has brought a civil suit against the two men, demanding NT$105.8 million in compensation for damage caused by the fire.

The civil suit has raised questions in the community as to whether a fruit farmer and a worker could possibly pay such an astronomical figure.

Legal experts have pointed out that in civil cases, issues such as compensation are decided by the civil court judge and are not necessarily based on the sum de-manded by the plaintiff.