Taiwan sparked interest in its blockchain-based system to combat illegal logging at a recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting of forestry ministers while showing curiosity in South Korea’s forest therapy programs.
In his presentation at the meeting held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, from Aug. 23 to 25, Taiwan’s Forestry Bureau chief Lin Hwa-ching (???) described the blockchain-based log tracing system as a way to certify that logs and wood products were legally acquired.
As long as a log or product is registered by the system, Lin said, it can be given a Taiwan Wood label to certify its legal status.
In addition, each domestic log is given a QR code that stays with the wood until it is used in a finished product and can then be scanned by consumers to trace the wood’s origins and be sure it comes from a legitimate source, Lin said.
According to Lin, Australian representatives at the meeting expressed interest in the tracing system and wanted to learn more about it in the future.
In addition to the tracing system, Lin also presented Taiwan’s government plans to amend the Forestry Act to require better controls for the roughly 3.7 million metric tons of wood Taiwan imports per year.
The revisions will require importers to provide documents issued by the government of the exporting country or a reliable third-party institution proving that the source of the wood is legal, a system that will force traders to find legitimate sources of wood, he said.
Meanwhile, Lin told CNA he had an informal talk with Korean representatives at the meeting on South Korea’s experience in promoting forest therapy — the use of forests to help heal people and improve their well-being.
He said Taiwan was just beginning to explore this field and would send people to South Korea to learn more about it if given the opportunity.
Commenting on the impact of COVID-19 on forest communities, Lin said the pandemic hurt sales of forest products, and those communities were hoping for an upturn in the economy so that residents do not have to destroy forests to make a living.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel