(1) New life for Taiwan’s coast

　The COA promoted the revitalization of coastal fishing ports through improvements to breakwaters, docks, and towing passes. To attract domestic tourists, the COA also drew up plans to improve or construct basic port facilities, wharf surfaces, tourist vessel berths, activity centers, fishermen’s activity centers and perform dredging at six fishing ports along Taiwan’s coast.

(2) Promotion of responsible fishery

1. The Statute Governing Investment and Management of Non-Taiwanese Fishing Boats along with two additional related statutes became law on October 16, 2009 to manage Taiwanese investment in and operation of non-Taiwanese fishing vessels, contributing to the stability of the international fishery industry.  

2. In order to strengthen oversight of deep-sea fishing vessels and ensure relevant laws are followed, we commissioned a specialized team to take full responsibility to uncover how the gathering and analysis of Taiwan’s fishery industry statistics could be strengthened. Their inquiry led to improvements in 10 areas. Four vessels performed fishing vessel inspections, boarding a total of 43 fishing vessels at sea and inspected 62 vessels in port. Inspectors were dispatched to perform at-sea observations for a total of 8,845 days, collecting a total of 3,863 biological specimens, and 17,045 photos of fish and bycatch. Monitoring systems were attached to 140 small and medium-size longline fishing vessels.

3. The COA completed 200,000 cubic meters of artificial reefs. To encourage fish resource and biodiversity, the COA raised and released 5 million fish fries into seas around Taiwan.

(3) Encouraging sustainable ecological development

1. Promoting a green Taiwan

　By providing incentives, the COA hopes to encourage farmers to perform afforestation on portions of their land, improving Taiwan’s environment and creating beautiful plains and preserving the integrity of the ecosystem. This project will expand outdoor recreational areas available for the public and develop the leisure industry in these newly green flatland areas to create a “safe, ecological, and beautiful homeland”. A total of 3,953 hectares of plains land were beautified, while 705 hectares of slopeland were afforested.

2. Developing flatland forest recreational areas

　In order to effectively utilize the positive results of flatland afforestation, the COA planned and established three flatland forest recreational areas that incorporate the agricultural industry, culture, community, and environmental education in surrounding areas. The Danong-Dafu Farm in Hualien County (LOHAS Forest Park), Dongshi-Aogu Farm in Chiayi County (World-Class Wetlands Park), and Linhou-Silin Farm in Pingtung County (Dawu Mountain Low-Elevation Forest Park) offer the public more choices for their outdoor leisure activities. They are also a key part of the afforestation goals set out under the “i-Taiwan 12 Projects” and are slated to reach their targets by the end of 2012.

3. Promoting forest ecotourism

 　(1) In order to meet domestic needs for outdoor recreation, the COA performed 29 improvements in 18 national forest recreation areas. In addition, we established three nature education centers and repaired or established 120 kilometers of forest trails. To continue to provide the public with a variety of options for outdoor activities, the COA promoted 16 ecotourism itineraries, giving 3.58 million people the chance to experience ecotourism. We also sponsored talks on ecotourism, which had a total audience of 620,000 people, and held 143 interactive ecotourism activities, effectively increasing the visibility of ecotourism.

　(2) In order to protect ecotourism sites, the COA has educated 170 trainers and 39 master trainers to promote the Leave No Trace (LNT) movement and set up 24 related educational programs. We completed the Siangyang Mountain Cabin and Chiaming Lake Cabin online reservation application, providing high-quality lodgings and information for cabin capacity control.

　(3) In 2009, Typhoon Morakot struck Taiwan causing extensive damages in forest recreation areas and to the trail systems. Through aggressive repairing efforts, the Aowanda, Kenting, Jhihben, and Alishan National Forest Recreation Areas have all been returned to their pre-typhoon states.

4. Enforcing sustainable management of forestry

　(1) To keep abreast of the state of Taiwan’s forest resources, the COA’s set up the National Non-Working Circle Forest Database and surveyed 560,000 hectares of public and private forest. In addition, 276 basic compartment maps were proofread based on the national forest working circles and re-surveys were conducted on 609 permanent plots. In order to enhance coastal ecological restoration, afforestation was carried out on 116 acres of coastline and on offshore islands. The COA also strengthened forest management, responding to a total of 46 forest fires and alarms (affecting 116.02 hectares of forest) and issuing citations in 90 cases of illegal logging (affecting 575.514 hectares of forest) and in 85 cases of excessive crop cultivation (affecting 31.1041 hectares of forest). The Forest and Nature Conservation Police Unit arrested 680 subjects suspected in 430 cases of violating relevant laws and regulations.

　(2) For the safety of people and public facilities and to ensure the longevity of reservoirs, the COA carried out 292 water and soil conservation projects, such as stabilizing 313 hectares of land in potential landslide areas to contain a total of 7.4 million cubic meters of potential landslide area. The COA also carried out work in 40 projects that entailed maintenance and improvements on forest trails and completed 54 projects on trail facilities under the expanded public construction investments. The COA continued its management of 465,936 hectares of protected forests and inspections on an additional 42,563 hectares.

5. Maintaining biodiversity

　(1) Working together with relevant agencies, the COA moved forward with 38 projects under the Biodiversity Action Plan. Achievements include the establishment of the Taiwan Biodiversity Information Facility (TaiBIF) and the National Portal of GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility). TaiBIF already stores metadata on 709 experts and 51,212 species. The COA implemented a national vegetation inventory and mapping program on over 1.62 million hectares of land, published the “Natural Vegetation Map of Taiwan” and named Major Wildlife Habitat in Chiayi County’s Aogu Wetlands.

　(2) The COA officially joined the United Nations’ Global Seed Vault in February 2009. Taiwan is depositing in the Svalbard Global Seed Vault some 12,000 seeds for locally grown crops, including paddy rices, grains, and vegetables, to preserve crops species, and join in the maintenance of global biodiversity and food security. This was a milestone in the international cooperation and development for ROC agriculture.

　(3) The COA worked to prevent, monitor, and eradicate infestations of invasive species such as imported red fire ants, brown anoles, white leadtree, Mikania micrantha (bitter vine), and smooth cordgrass.

　(4) The COA also carried out biodiversity education programs and subsidized the planning of 18 related programs by government run or non-profit groups. There are currently 194 projects under the phase one Community Forestry Projects and six in the second phase called the Forestry Model Community Operation Plan.

(4) Strengthening protection and restoration of national lands

1. Flood minimization in easily inundated areas

　(1) The COA’s Soil and Water Conservation Bureau aims to protect Taiwan’s slopelands and prevent flooding. Through the end of 2009, completed phase one construction projects resulted in the reduction of an estimated 7.84 million cubic meters of sediment in watersheds, while phase two projects reduced sediment by 9.33 million cubic meters.

　(2) Continuing its cooperation with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the COA completed planning of a drainage system for easily inundated land. A total of 21 projects have been completed, which will reduce losses from flooding and increase land utilization values.

2. Promoting soil and water conservation and flood control

　(1) Running from 2006 to 2009, the first phase of COA’s plan to protect Shihmen Reservoir and other watersheds stabilized 10.5 million cubic meters of sediment and restored 67 hectares of landslide areas.

　(2) Over the past year, the COA pressed forward on large-scale sediment control projects to prevent disastrous debris flows and ensure proper watershed management, furthering its goal of protecting water and soil resources and creating safe, high-quality, ecologically-friendly watersheds. In 2009, a total of 6.2 million cubic meters of sediment was stabilized. These efforts, along with monitoring and forecasting, will enable us to reduce the instances of disasters

　(3) The COA accelerated the slopeland disaster prevention and dredging plan for the 2009 – 2012 implementation period, for which NT$8.31 billion has been budgeted. After the 2009 projects are completed, an estimated 13.12 million square meters of sediment will be brought under control.

3. Establishing a debris flow prevention system

　(1) Implementing Debris Flow prevention

　The COA disclosed the 1,502 waterways in Taiwan where debris flow torrents could potentially occur to the public. We reviewed and updated evacuation plans for a total of 536 villages and neighborhoods and created lists of the 34,483 residents residing in affected areas.

　(2) Helping residents protect themselves

　The COA performed 280 debris flow evacuation drills and education sessions and trained an additional 406 debris flow disaster prevention agents, bringing the total to 1,814 agents. In addition, self-protection work was promoted in 108 villages and neighborhoods.

　(3) Strengthening debris flow disaster response mechanisms

　The COA performed scheduled reviews and revisions of the rainfall threshold values for debris flow warnings. We convened emergency response teams a total of 5 times, spanning a period of 43 days and 6,009 participants. Individual emergency contacts were informed of potential debris flows 146,336 times. A total of 659 code red warnings were issued, while code yellow warnings were issued 653 times. 

　(4) Improving debris flow monitoring

　Monitoring continued at 18 permanent debris flow and sediment observation stations. By comparing earlier satellite images, a total of 2,625 points of difference were found in slopeland areas involving over 1,730 hectares of land. The COA provided image lookup and overlay services 15,730 times. We utilized the QPESUMS rainfall estimation and monitoring system, developed jointly with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, and established cooperative links with 36 nations to further study and prevent landslides and debris flows.

4. Monitoring and management of slopelands

　In 2009, 1,458 applications (including soil and water conservation plans) were approved for development projects covering 1,189 hectares of land. The COA carried out a total of 1,944 inspections during the construction process. A total of 2,625 points of difference were found in slopeland areas through comparing earlier satellite images. The COA cracked down on 1,328 cases of illegal slopeland usage, covering 275 hectares, netting NT$88.63 million in fines. Sixty-nine of the cases were referred to judicial authorities for further investigation and prosecution. The COA also counseled local governments on setting up soil and water conservation service corps and 1,560 acts of public service were carried out to enhance public understanding of relevant laws. Education and punishment of offenders can help to promote proper use of slopelands.