More Taiwan Greening ?

Tainan tackles idling cars

The Taipei Times reports that on Tuesday Tainan City became the nation's first city to ban idling vehicles with fines of as much as NT$2,000 for drivers leaving their engine running for more than three minutes when their vehicle is not in use. Well done Tainan ! Let's hope the other cities follow Tainan's lead and that this legislation is enforced.

Also reported in the Taipei Times today was the Council of Agriculture saying yesterday that it would promote a tree-planting campaign to help increase the ratio of green land. Again, a good thing. However, I can't help but be a little suspicious of some of these tree-planting efforts. One example that springs to mind is the current reclaiming effort being waged against valuable sea habitat in the name of tree-planting. Yes, in Mailiao, Yunlin County, just next to the Formosa plant they are reclaiming land and in the process destroying valuable Taiwan humpback dolphin habitat to plant trees so that the area is "greener."

Valuable dolphin habitat being "reclaimed" to plant trees, Mailiao.

See today's Taipei Times.