ROC President Ma Ying-jeou set out five plum trees on the grounds of the Presidential Office in Taipei while people in 15 other communities, linked via a live video connection, planted more than 15,000 trees.
“Afforestation is an important government measure to facilitate carbon reduction,” Ma said. “Our goal is to create 60,000 hectares of new forest in 8 years, with 20,504 hectares already established, absorbing 300,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. By the end of 2011, Taiwan will see 6,440 hectares more land covered by greenery.”
Vice President Vincent C. Siew also presided over a national tree-planting event in Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township on the same day. Over 12,000 participants planted 14,950 seedlings in a 3.2-hectare area, including Formosa acacias, pines and Indian beech, the COA said.
An exhibition organized by the COA’s Forestry Bureau at the same venue displays information on Taiwan’s biodiversity and nature education and preservation. (THN)
Write to Kwangyin Liu at kwangyin.liu@mail.gio.gov.tw