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Mayor praises contributions by `green' volunteers

Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday lauded 32 outstanding volunteers at an award ceremony recognizing the contributions made by the city's 11,000 environmental protection volunteers.

The city's Department of Civil Affairs commissioner, Huang Lu Ching-ju (黃呂錦茹), who has served as community volunteer squad chief for 13 years, was also recognized for her work at the ceremony.

Established 16 years ago, the environmental protection volunteer squad consists of 12 divisional teams spread across the city.

"Taipei is a model city for the rest of the nation in that a large percentage of its residents have a strong sense of environmental protection," Hau said. "I attribute a lot of these achievements to the devotion of a well-organized volunteer squad. Without them Taipei would not be as clean as it is today."

Though the squad has been cleaning up the city since 1991, their quest has not been easy, Huang Lu told reporters.

Before 1999, Huang Lu and other volunteers held workshops and seminars throughout the city to educate the public on "environmental conservation."

"The initial public response was unenthusiastic, which was disappointing," she said.

However, the volunteers saw more and more Taipei residents become "green-conscious" in 2002 -- a year that saw "many environmental policies come into force, like garbage bag sizing and public bathroom cleanup," she said.

Yesterday, 32 team members were rewarded for their long-term contributions -- four received first-grade awards, nine were given second-grade awards and 19 were granted third-grade awards.

"Environmental protection should involve both the government and the public," said first-grade award recipient, 55-year-old Huang Ru-sheng (黃如盛). "We fill in the gaps that the environmental protection bureau misses, such as street sweeping or garbage sorting. We are a team with the government."

Asked where Huang found his motivation to devote eight years of Sundays to the community, Huang said: "Community service is relaxing and rewarding."

"I lead seminars that discuss environmental protection volun-teering. I feel that it is something that should be promoted more," he said.
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