A new debate is brewing over an area in Chiku township (
The area is a promising sightseeing spot, Tainan County Gov-ernment officials said yesterday, but ecologists warned that visiting crowds may upset the balance of nature on the site.
Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (
Foreign ecologists suggested that the pavilions near black-faced spoonbills' wintering site should left alone for quiet bird watchers rather than made accessible to tourists and vendors.
Su said the council's announce-ment of laws regulating the black-faced spoonbill reserve would serve to guide local authorities in how to wisely manage the area.
"We plan to build a research center near the black-faced spoon-bill habitat for ecologists and organizations to further protect the fragile ecological system in Chi-ku," Su said.
The area has been controversial since 1993, when the Tuntex Group and Yieh-loong Group proposed building the Pinnan Industrial Complex (濱南工業區) to promote petrochemical and steel-making industries. Since then, conservationists have protested against the industrial usage of Chiku Lagoon, a wintering site for endangered black-faced spoonbills.
According to conservationists, the world population of black-faced spoonbills is estimated at less than 1,000. The endangered bird breeds on islets near the Korean Peninsula, spending wintertime in places ranging from Japan and China to Taiwan and Vietnam.
On average, about 600 black-faced spoonbills migrate to Chiku.
The Environmental Protection Administration is evaluating the environmental impact assessment the Pinnan project would have on the area, focusing on water supply and harbor usage issues.
Earlier this year Su proposed scrapping the Pinnan project and developing the area as an eco-tourism site, an idea which gained the support of President Chen Shui-bian (
On Aug. 22 in Chiku, Chen said that he would fully support Su's idea to establish a "Nanying national scenic area," arguing eco-tourism in coastal counties, including Yunlin, Chiayi and Tainan, should be promoted.
Chen Jin-an (
"We aim to ensure Chiku's sustainability through promoting low-density, high-quality eco-tourism," he said.
At this weekend's conference, Peter Schleifenbaumof the Haliburton Forest and Wildlife Reserve in Ontario, Canada and Terry Brown, professor of Griffith University in Australia, will share their experiences balancing eco-tourism and conservation.
King Hen-biau (
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
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