While an Oscar award-winning documentary has recently put Japan in hot water over its dolphin hunting, Taiwan’s endangered white dolphins are on the verge of extinction because their natural habitat is disappearing as a result of severe environmental degradation, a wildlife conservationist said on Sunday.
Gan Chen-yi (甘宸宜), secretary of the non-profit Matsu’s Fish Conservation Union, said the number of white dolphins, also known as Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins — a species listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as “critically endangered” in 2008 — now stands at only between 60 and 90 off the west coast.
“The Taiwanese white dolphin might become extinct within 10 years if industrial development near the estuary of the Jhuoshuei River (濁水溪) is not halted,” said Gan, who doubles as secretary of the Taiwan Environmental Protection Union.
Gan said there was previously believed to be approximately 200 of the mammals about 3km to 5km off the west coast between Miaoli and Tainan counties between 2004 and 2006.
That number had fallen to no more than 100 by 2007, indicating that various industrial and harbor development projects along the western coastline have seriously polluted the dolphin’s natural habitat, Gan said.
“The issue is becoming even more pressing, as the north side of the Jhuoshuei River estuary between the counties of Changhua and Yunlin has been zoned as a development area for a new naphtha cracking plant,” she said.
She called on the public to purchase public land near the estuary and put that land into trust in an effort to protect the critically endangered species.
Meanwhile, Tung Gene-sheng (董景生), chairman of the Taipei-based Taiwan Environmental Information Center, said his office has invited Oliver Maurice, an official with the International National Trust Organization, to come to Taiwan to help residents buy public land.
Tung said according to the center’s plan, a corridor of 200 hectares of land along the estuary would need to be purchased in the first phase of the project, with each unit of 1m² zoned as one share and selling at a cost of NT$119.
A trust fund would be created through the land sales, Tung said, adding that the drive was expected to take 90 days.
White dolphins have an extremely low birth rate and a life span of 30 to 40 years. It takes 10 to 12 years for them to reach sexual maturity and a female dolphin gives birth only once every three to four years, Tung said.
The humpback dolphins are called “Matsu’s fish” by local fishermen because they are seen most frequently between March and April, when the birthday of Matsu, the Chinese goddess of the sea, is celebrated in Taiwan.
LOW RISK: Most nations do not extradite people accused of political crimes, and the UN says extradition can only happen if the act is a crime in both countries, an official said China yesterday issued wanted notices for two Taiwanese influencers, accusing them of committing “separatist acts” by criticizing Beijing, amid broadening concerns over China’s state-directed transnational repression. The Quanzhou Public Security Bureau in a notice posted online said police are offering a reward of up to 25,000 yuan (US$3,523) for information that could contribute to the investigation or apprehension of pro-Taiwanese independence YouTuber Wen Tzu-yu (溫子渝),who is known as Pa Chiung (八炯) online, and rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源). Wen and Chen are suspected of spreading content that supported secession from China, slandered Chinese policies that benefit Taiwanese and discrimination against Chinese spouses of
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
PROMOTION: Travelers who want a free stopover must book their flights with designated travel agents, such as Lion Travel, Holiday Tours, Cola Tour and Life Tours Air Canada yesterday said it is offering Taiwanese travelers who are headed to North America free stopovers if they transit though airports in Japan and South Korea. The promotion was launched in response to a potential rise in demand for flights to North America in June and July next year, when the US, Canada and Mexico are scheduled to jointly host the FIFA World Cup, Air Canada said. Air Canada offers services to 13 of the 16 host cities of the tournament’s soccer games, including Toronto and Vancouver; Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey in Mexico; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston; Dallas; Houston;
The US approved the possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet spare and repair parts for US$330 million, the Pentagon said late yesterday, marking the first such potential transaction since US President Donald Trump took office in January. "The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient's fleet of F-16, C-130," and other aircraft, the Pentagon said in a statement. Trump previously said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader is in office. The announcement of the possible arms
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