At the inauguration ceremony of the Aogu Wetland & Forest Park in Dongshih Township, Chiayi County, Premier Sean Chen said that the Wetland Act which the Executive Yuan is currently reviewing will ensure the conservation and wise use of all Taiwan's wetlands.
The bill, drafted by the Ministry of the Interior, was reviewed three times by the Executive Yuan's ministers without portfolio and will be submitted for consideration at next week's Cabinet meeting.
"Preserving wetlands is a major national policy," the premier emphasized. He called wetlands the earth's kidneys, as they are essential to regulating and regenerating the environment as a whole.
The premier expressed gratitude to the many parties who worked together to create the park, thanking the Council of Agriculture (COA) for its meticulous planning, the COA's Forestry Bureau for creating a forest from flat land, the Chiayi County Government and Taiwan Sugar Corp. for providing the land and National Sun Yat-sen University's multinational taskforce for designing the area.
"The global Ramsar Convention on Wetlands calls for the 'wise use of wetlands.' Aogu Wetland & Forest Park, which won the American Society of Landscape Architects Analysis and Planning Professional Award in 2011 over 566 other entries, demonstrates the wisdom of the Taiwanese people," Chen said.
After visiting the wetland, sea-viewing pavilion and forest park, the premier spent the afternoon at the Alishan and Cypress forestry villages, one of the six major urban renewal plans of the i-Taiwan 12 Projects. The premier signed a message of congratulations for completion of the project on the bulletin board of the Cypress Forestry Life Village.
The renewal project encompasses a cluster of historical architecture between Gonghe Road and Beimen Street, the area surrounding a Forestry Bureau club, and a sawmill district in Chiayi. Architecture there is being refurbished and repurposed as a forestry-themed regional arts and recreation center.
The premier pointed out that the Tropic of Cancer cuts through Taiwan, but unlike other countries, the island is blessed with a rich diversity of environments at this latitude. "I hope a Tropic of Cancer-based tour will be developed so more local and overseas tourists can experience our coastal wetlands, the forestry culture in Chiayi and wide-ranging scenic views from high-altitude forests," he said.
Executive Yuan Secretary-General Steven S. K. Chen and Deputy Secretary-General Huang Min-kon, who doubles as CEO of the Executive Yuan's Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan Joint Services Center, accompanied the premier during his inspection tour, as did COA Minister Chen Bao-ji.