Taiwan’s wild places are masterpieces of nature. But garbage tossed by passing humans is threatening even the most remote of these places. Officials have decided to take action, organizing a team of alpinists for a cleanup in Taiwan’s eastern mountains.
As Taiwan has become more environmentally conscious in recent years, garbage-strewn beaches have received a lot of attention. But Taiwan’s garbage problem extends deep into its mountainous interior.
Litter in the mountains is more than just unsightly: officials warn that flammable garbage could help wildfires spread during the dry season.
In mountainous Hualien County on Taiwan’s east coast, officials have decided to fight back against this tide of trash. The Forestry Bureau got together a team of 50 climbers and put them to work on a cleanup project. The goal was to clear the slopes near a mountain highway.
The team’s haul of garbage ended up weighing around 300 tons. Among the climbers’ more unusual discoveries were a printer and an oven. Team members say they hope to get more people to care for the earth- and that authorities will install surveillance equipment to catch litterers in the act.