Forestry Bureau officials yesterday said that strong conservation efforts have helped increase the number of rare pheasant-tailed jacanas to a record 570 this year from less than 100 in 1998, with farmers in Tainan’s Guantian District (官田) adopting eco-friendly farming techniques and developing organic products to preserve the bird’s major habitats.
Belonging to the waders group, pheasant-tailed jacanas are identified by their huge feet and claws, which allow them to walk on floating vegetation.
In the past, they were commonly seen in shallow waters in southern Taiwan. However, due to disappearing habitats, the bird has been classified as a “rare and valuable species” in the nation’s three-category wildlife protection list, the bureau said, adding that at one stage there were as few as 31 jacana nests and 40 chicks in Tainan.
Photo: CNA
Guantian is home to the bird’s largest habitat in Taiwan, as local fields are flooded all year round to grow rice and water chestnuts, bureau officials said.
The bird’s population had grown over the past few years due to conservation efforts, but 85 pheasant-tailed jacanas died eating produce sprayed with pesticide in 2010, prompting the bureau and the Tse-Xin Organic Agriculture Foundation to establish a “green conservation label” in 2011 and encourage pesticide-free contract farming in Guantian, officials said.
Such contract farming provides financial incentives to farmers, as rice grown by contracted farmers is sold at NT$13 per jin (600g), which is higher than the average wholesale price of NT$9 per jin and is equivalent to the price of organic rice, while local water chestnut can be sold at NT$55 per jin, much higher than the average price of NT$30 per jin, the bureau said.
Farmland included in the green conservation label project has increased from three to 22 hectares, resulting in the bird’s rising population, with 1,378 chicks hatched last year and 570 adult birds seen this year, the bureau said.
Bureau officials said it has developed a water chestnut jelly to create value for local producers and encourage eco-friendly farming, while 10 percent of the product’s revenue is used to conserve the jacana and the environment.
The jelly is made with chestnut soup and is free of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, the officials said, adding that the jelly is rich in polyphenol, an antioxidant.
To encourage eco-farming, the bureau said that it established a green conservation fund in June by diverting 15 percent of the revenue of the products tagged with the green conservation label to developing agriculture, recruiting young farmers and for emergency relief.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS