The Ministry of Agriculture today said it plans to take more serious action to deal with invasive green iguanas, whose growing population is threatening agriculture in southern Taiwan.
The ministry plans to establish a specialized team and work with local governments to deal with the reptiles, and is considering the use of guns, Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said at a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Economics Committee.
Agriculture in southern Taiwan, including rice and red bean fields, is being affected by the rapidly reproducing green iguanas, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆) said.
Photo: Lin Yi-chang, Taipei Times
The Pingtung County Government already raised its budget to deal with the issue from NT$2 million to NT$3 million (US$61,526 to US$92,390), and expects to spend NT$6 million to deal with about 30,000 of the iguanas this year, Lai said.
Handling practices differ at borders between counties and cities, which allows the iguanas to roam freely and creates gaps in control, he added.
There are currently nearly 200,000 green iguanas in Taiwan, and 190,000 have been captured since 2021, Chen said, acknowledging the severity of the issue.
The ministry needs the appropriate budget to deal with the problem, he added.
Chen said it plans to work with local governments to explore the possibility of using guns, which have been used to handle other invasive species in the past, and would conduct training and workshops beforehand.
The ministry also plans to create a platform to handle iguana control at river and border areas, he added.
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