Unit 3 Economic Development
of Penghu
Author: Yu-Chen Chen(陳玉珍) Translator:Gloria Fung
The islands of Penghu lie in the southeast of the middle of the Taiwan Strait. Its coastline is over 320 km. Along the way, it twists and turns, creating a lot of bays and coves. The landscape along the shoreline is rich in variety. The Penghu Islands are formed from basalt and coral reefs; they look like pearls scattered on the ocean. The unique natural resources, scenery and ecosystems are Penghu’s special assets.
The clear water and soft, white sand of Penghu are especially suitable for recreational activities; the sand spit of Jibei – a golden sandy beach about one thousand meters long – is particularly attractive to holiday-makers. The beaches on Wangan are now the protected conservation area for green turtles which lay their eggs there. Penghu has large intertidal areas and the shallow coral zone is rich in marine resources such as fish, shellfish, crustaceans and echinodermata (棘皮動物). Among these, the long-finned grouper (玳瑁石斑) is the Penghu County Fish. The diversity of marine creatures is a valuable resource.
The pillar basalt columns are the products of volcanic activities. Jishanyu (雞善), Dinggouyu (錠鉤) and Small Baisha Island (小白沙嶼) have been turned into “Basalt Natural Reservation Areas.” Maoyu (貓嶼) and the neighboring uninhabited islands in the South Sea have been made a “Seabird Reservation Area.” Here, different kinds of protected birds breed. It is a stopover for many migrating birds. In recent years, many rare migrating birds have been sighted in Penghu; this world-class paradise for seabirds is a significant natural resource in the development of Penghu into a tourist destination. The Penghu Oriental Skylark (澎湖小雲雀) is a sub-species of the skylark; it is a native of Penghu. It can be seen all over the county all year round. It soars above the vast expanse of open country and its singing is loud and clear. It is known as “mid-sky bird (半天鳥);” and it is a native wild bird of Penghu.
In Penghu, because of the relief and climate, its soil, which came from basalt, is infertile. It may be red, reddish brown or yellowish brown in color, which makes it quite different from the soil on the island of Taiwan. Plants that grow naturally here are naturalized plants like the hardy tiger-ju or Indian blanket (天人菊) – a plant characteristic of Penghu -- which can grow even in dry, barren soil, just like the residents of the islands who carry on even in the most difficult conditions. For this reason, it has been chosen as the county flower. Other plants that are seen on high ground along the shoreline include the cactus, century plant (龍舌蘭) and aloe.
Because it is surrounded by the sea, the specialties of Penghu include fresh seafood, processed seafood (dried fish, squid balls), local agricultural products like the loofah gourd, pumpkin and aloe; traditional snacks like “salt cakes,” “black sugar cakes,” and “winter melon cakes;” as well as jewellery and seals made from cat’s eye and jewellery made from coral. The rich natural and cultural resources of our hometown have given us specialties unique to the area. They are also the special assets of Penghu.
The sea is our treasure chest. Our forefathers designed many traditional fishing methods which are found only in Penghu. In the intertidal zones, fishing is done using stone weirs, stone blocks, and trawling; other fishing activities include whelk-picking, clam-digging, dredging for seaweeds, as well as drying and processing fish. Then there is coastal fishing, fishing with fishing rods and dredging for coral – the latter is one activity that is now in decline. A related industry is the use of coral reefs and shell fragments for making lime in the lime kilns. On the shores of Penghu, broken coral reefs are a common sight; our forefathers, in their wisdom, were able to transform these, as well as the discarded shells of clams and whelks, into valuable building materials by using fire. Hsu He (許賀) from Hsu Family Village (許家村) built the first lime kiln. By the third generation, there were already four lime kilns. This enabled them to dominate the Penghu building materials market during the Occupation. The changing times and the coming of concrete mean that lime is no longer used very much, the Hsu family kilns are now part of history and, truly, they are an important part of Penghu’s cultural history. On September 10, 1999, in an effort to protect the country’s marine resources, the Penghu County government imposed a ban on the harvesting of coral reefs within 12 nautical miles of the shore. The unlicensed display, sale, import and export of coral in Penghu is punishable by a maximum of three years imprisonment and/or a fine of no more than NT$150, 000. There are, so far, no restrictions on red coral.
In Penghu, the traditional industries of farming and fishing have now been transformed into leisure farming and fishing. Combined with the tourist industry, they are creating more economic opportunities. The Agriculture and Fishing Bureau of the county government organizes the following activities as ways of promoting recreational farming and fishing throughout the year:
l January – Seaweed Harvest in Gupoyu;
l February – Fishing for Octopus;
l March – Spring Fishing;
l April –Three Melons of Penghu Tasting;
l May – Learn about Fish Farming with Net Cages; Peanut Harvest;
l June – Learn about Abalone Cultivation in Chimei;
l July – Fishing for Squid by Night; Oyster-tasting;
l August – Fall in Love with the Silver-stripe Round Herring; Whelk-picking and Crab-fishing in the Intertidal Areas;
l September – Trawling and Stone Block-fishing;
l October – Your Plant Doctor – Aloe; Crab-tasting;
l November – Fishing among the Rocks;
l December – Seaweed Harvest.
To protect the special Penghu breed of octopus, on February 16, 2005, the county government announced that “With immediate effect until December 31, 2006, the harvesting, possession, sale, and use of Penghu octopus is banned. In addition, on February 14, 2006 there were other announcements forbidding and restricting the fishing of the giant clam (硨磲貝). The legislation will take effect on June 1, 2006. Please observe the laws as a way of protecting our marine resources.”
The marine and cultural resources of Penghu are very important to the development of the tourism industry in Penghu. The natural resources that are unique to Penghu and its long cultural history are vital to the growth of the tourism in Penghu. For this reason, the county government and the community have jointly organized a series of activities that bring together the natural and cultural assets to help promote tourism. These include the Windsurfing Cobia Festival, Cross Penghu Bay Swim Day, Fireworks Festival, Stone Weir Festival, Seafood Festival and Sightseeing while Sea-kayaking, etc. Tourism may bring damage to the natural environment and cultural assets of Penghu. For this reason, there must be some restrictions. It is a difficult task to maintain the standard of the tourism industry, that is why it is vital that we work together to protect our natural and cultural resources. Only by doing so can we ensure that the economy of Penghu will continue to grow.