National-treasure-level Changhua coastal wetland has international-level potential; environmental groups urge prompt official announcement and designation
The Changhua coastal wetland has a diverse ecology, yet it has long gone undesignated as a national-level wetland. Even though local residents successfully drove the Kuo Kuang Petrochemical project out of the area years ago, in the face of industrial wastewater pollution in recent years and even the offshore wind turbines promoted by the Changhua County Government, environmental groups worry that the Changhua wetland will disappear because of the government's lack of active action. "The land along Taiwan's west coast has already been destroyed by industry, commerce and the economy," said Hung Hsin-yu, chairman of the Changhua County Environmental Protection Union, noting that not a single wetland in Changhua County has been preserved.
Today (the 2nd) is International Wetlands Day, and the Changhua County Environmental Protection Union held a press conference in front of the Changhua County Government, calling on the government to designate the Changhua coast as a national wetland as soon as possible and to invest more funding in environmental monitoring and wetland protection. Hung Hsin-yu said that Taichung's Gaomei Wetland is only a national-level wetland, yet it has already shone brightly, while an internationally significant wetland like Changhua still sees no further action. "From the fight against Kuo Kuang Petrochemical to now, politicians all say wetlands are wonderful, but no one dares to act. The Wetland Conservation Act has already been passed, so Changhua could rightfully be turned into a national-level wetland."
Hung Hsin-yu also said that a British scholar came to Taiwan to look into Taiwan's coast and stated that in the UK this wetland would definitely be protected as a priority, no matter how much money or funding it took, because it must be protected for the next generation. "But what about Taiwan? All it can do is scramble for politics and the economy. We are not opposed to scrambling for the economy; we just hope the governing authorities will think of the next generation."
Regarding the failure to designate the Changhua coastal wetland as a national-level wetland, the Changhua County Government Department of City and Tourism Development said that in the past wetlands were gradually designated through recommendations from environmental groups and government agencies, and it was only after the Wetland Conservation Act was officially announced and implemented in 2015 that there was a legal basis. "There is no doubt about the potential of the Changhua coastal wetland, but there are still quite a few voices of opposition locally; residents still fear that after designation, fishing and harvesting will not be able to continue." So at the time public opinion could not be consolidated, and it could only be designated as an undetermined wetland, and could not be further officially announced as a national-level wetland.
According to the Wetland Conservation Act, wetland analysis reports may be submitted by NGO groups or county and city governments. The Changhua County Government Department of City and Tourism Development explained that the Changhua County Wild Bird Society submitted one in the past, but it was returned by the Construction and Planning Agency due to missing data. This month they will submit it again, and once the data is in order, the advisory panel will invite relevant groups to express their opinions and will hold public hearings and local briefing sessions, feeding into a final advisory conference; only after all opinions are consolidated can the designation as a national-level wetland be approved.
In response to environmental groups questioning the Changhua County Government's inaction, the Changhua County Government Department of City and Tourism Development responded, "There are still voices of opposition locally; the county government cannot act just because this group of people approves; it should only act once everything is free of problems," and the Changhua County Wild Bird Society interacts well with the community, so opposition voices raised through them will not be so loud.
News Glossary: What is International Wetlands Day?
February 2 is International Wetlands Day as designated by the United Nations. Because wetlands have important ecological functions such as carbon sequestration and water purification, wetlands became the only United Nations convention day dedicated to protecting a single ecosystem, and the Standing Committee of the Ramsar Convention has actively carried out various activities to raise public awareness of wetlands and promote wetland protection. On February 2, 1971, the global intergovernmental wetland protection convention "Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat," abbreviated as the "Ramsar Convention," was signed in Ramsar, Iran.