The Cabinet-level Ocean Affairs Council received a Japanese delegation April 16 in southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung City, highlighting commitment to jointly developing the blue carbon economy.
Welcomed by OAC Deputy Minister Huang Hsiang-wen, the group comprised Yokohama City Council members Hirotaka Mori and Shuhei Takada, as well as Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly members Akihito Sugahara and Manabu Morita.
Taiwan and Japan face similar climate change and sustainable utilization of marine resources challenges, Huang said. She added that Taiwan is actively promoting marine carbon sinks and has included the goal in the country’s pathway to net-zero emissions in 2050.
Huang noted that the OAC has completed blue carbon sink methodology for mangrove and seagrass beds, and expressed hope that after review by the Ministry of the Environment the methodology will be incorporated into the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report and the carbon credit verification mechanism.
Mori said the delegation’s visit aims to share Japan’s successful experience of blue carbon sinks and undertake exchange with businesses on relevant technology. The council added that they both agreed that the key to success in marine ecological protection and restoration is local stakeholders’ confidence and trust in decision making.
The OAC added that Huang attended the 12th annual World Ocean Summit and Expo held last month in Tokyo, sharing Taiwan policy on plastic restriction and an initiative to set up an Indo-Pacific waste management cooperation platform with representatives from over 10 countries. In addition, the OAC has worked with Japan on handling marine waste management, having signed a cooperative memorandum with the Japan Ministry of the Environment in 2023.
The OAC is committed to strengthening collaboration with Japanese authorities in sectors including further carbon sinks, protection of marine biodiversity, the blue economy and ecological rehabilitation. (YCH-E)
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