The Taipei City Government warned its residents yesterday not to feed pigeons in public spaces and said it had fined three individuals in June for ignoring the regulation in Da-an Park.
Each individual was fined NT$1,200 by the city’s Environmental Protection Department for feeding pigeons in Da-an Park despite being told by patrol officers to refrain from doing so.
Kuo Wen-chun (郭文俊), chief of the department’s inspection team, said the feeding of pigeons in Da-an Park, at Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall and other public spaces attracts large flocks of the birds, which affects the quality of life of nearby residents and caused concerns over the birds’ impact on the environment.
In the wake of increasing complaints by residents near Da-an Park about the number of pigeons in the park, in May the department redoubled its inspection efforts to persuade the public to avoid feeding pigeons and other wild birds, Kuo said.
The department sent patrols to Da-an Park and other public spaces every day and issued warnings to those who were caught feeding pigeons and other wild birds.
If they ignored the warnings and continued feeding the birds, they faced a fine of up to NT$6,000 for violating the National Waste Disposal Law (廢棄物清理法), he said.
Liang Hung-lang (梁宏郎), a division chief at the department, said a total of 13 individuals were fined for feeding pigeons last year.
Wong Wing-wai (王永衛), director of the city’s Division for Disease Control and Prevention, said that every pigeon produces about 12kg of droppings per year, adding that pigeon feces contains Cryptococcus neoformans, a kind of fungus that can cause pneumonia and meningitis.
Liang said the city government would put up a sign in major parks to call on residents not to feed pigeons.
The department will step up patrolling efforts in Da-an Park and at the memorial hall, he said.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
RSS