TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Illegal logging cases in Taiwan’s state-owned forests have fallen nearly 80% over the past decade, from 290 cases in 2013 to 58 in 2024, according to the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency.

Agency Director Lin Hua-ching (林華慶) attributed the decline to a multi-pronged strategy that includes technology-based monitoring, an early warning system, and collaboration with police and local communities, per CNA.

As of last year, 91 communities from regions including Miaoli, Nantou, and Taitung were participating in forest patrols, contributing to a near-zero rate of local illegal logging.

Lin Ken-I (林肯毅), a village chief in Taitung’s Beinan Township, said the village has helped authorities solve nearly 30 illegal logging cases. He emphasized that locals know the forest terrain better than agency staff and urged the government to increase patrol stipends for community members.

The agency has also employed integrated maps, trend charts, and statistical analysis to identify hotspots and predict potential incidents.

To reduce economic dependence on illegal logging, the agency has helped Indigenous mountain communities develop alternative livelihoods such as beekeeping, mushroom farming, and eco-tourism.

Research by National Taipei University biology professor Chen Hsiang-fan (陳湘繁) found that most convicted loggers lived within 20 kilometers of the affected areas. Based on interviews with 92 individuals, Chen noted many came from single-parent or disadvantaged households and turned to illegal logging for survival.

In one case, a logger earned NT$100,000 (US$3,364) in a single day and used the money to buy drugs, she said.