Taiwan, China's largest muddy intertidal zone: Environmental groups call for Dacheng Wetland to be promptly returned to the national conservation list

The Changhua Dacheng Wetland, which nurtures abundant benthic life and was once included in the national selection list of important wetlands, was originally excluded because of the Kuokuang Petrochemical land reclamation by filling the sea; and now, the Kuokuang Petrochemical case has been stillborn, but the Construction and Planning Agency and the Agriculture Department of the Changhua County Government, as the main responsible agencies for wetland selection, are pointing at each other to move first. The Changhua Environmental Protection Union specially chose February 2, International Wetlands Day, to call on the central and local governments to stop passing the buck and to draft the Changhua Dacheng Wetland conservation plan as soon as possible, handle the assessment work for the Changhua coast, and return the conservation status that the Changhua Dacheng Wetland deserves.

News Mini-Dictionary: What is International Wetlands Day?

February 2 is International Wetlands Day designated by the United Nations. Because wetlands have important ecological functions such as carbon sequestration and water purification, wetlands have become the only United Nations convention day internationally that protects a single ecosystem. The Standing Committee of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands has also 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" was signed in Ramsar, Iran, referred to as the "Ramsar Convention."

Dacheng Wetland has a rich estuarine ecology, yet it is not even a locally important wetland?

The Changhua Environmental Protection Union pointed out that the Zhuoshui River estuary provides a large amount of muddy material, making the Changhua Dacheng Wetland form the largest muddy intertidal zone in all of Taiwan. It not only nurtures rich and diverse benthic life, but is also habitat for protected bird species such as the Eurasian Curlew and Saunders's Gull. The area also has the unique industry of "oyster harvesting by ox cart," all of which are the reasons why the Changhua Dacheng Wetland was included in the national selection list of important wetlands.

The Changhua Dacheng Wetland was already included in the national selection list of important wetlands as early as 2006, and until the second selection in 2009, the selection committee members still consistently considered the Changhua Dacheng Wetland unique and irreplaceable, and therefore included it in the international-level wetland list; it was not until the Executive Yuan that year promoted the Kuokuang Petrochemical land reclamation by filling the sea plan that, under the authorization of senior Executive Yuan officials, the Changhua Dacheng Wetland was removed from the list. At present, Dacheng Wetland is not even a locally important wetland.

Now, the Kuokuang Petrochemical case has been suspended, and two years ago on February 2, the "Wetland Conservation Act" was also announced and implemented. The Changhua Environmental Protection Union believes that the Changhua Dacheng Wetland should return to the list of nationally important wetlands.