Geography of Taiwan
low-level radioactive waste disposal[1] | |
Exclusive economic zone | 83,231 km2 (32,136 sq mi) |
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Taiwan | ||
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BUC | Dài-uăng |
Geologically, the main island comprises a tilted
The climate ranges from tropical in the south to subtropical in the north, and is governed by the East Asian Monsoon. On average, four typhoons strike the main island each year. The heavily forested eastern mountains provide a habitat for a diverse range of wildlife, while human land use in the western and northern lowlands is intensive.
Physical boundaries
The total land area of Taiwan is 36,197 km2 (13,976 sq mi),[2] slightly larger than Belgium. It has a coastline of 1,566.3 km (973.3 mi).[1] The ROC claims an exclusive economic zone of 83,231 km2 (32,136 sq mi) with 200 nmi (370.4 km; 230.2 mi) and a territorial sea of 12 nmi (22.2 km; 13.8 mi).[1][3]
Taiwan proper, the main island of the archipelago, was known in the West until after
The island of Taiwan is separated from the southeast coast of mainland China by the Taiwan Strait, which ranges from 220 km (140 mi) at its widest point to 130 km (81 mi) at its narrowest. Part of the continental shelf, the Strait is no more than 100 m (330 ft) deep, and has become a land bridge during glacial periods.[7]
To the south, the island of Taiwan is separated from the Philippine island of Luzon by the 250 km (155 mi)-wide Luzon Strait. The South China Sea lies to the southwest, the East China Sea to the north, and the Philippine Sea to the east.[8] Niushan Island in Nanlai village, Aoqian town, Pingtan County, Fuzhou, Fujian is the closest China (PRC)-administered island to Taiwan (main island).[9]
Smaller islands of the archipelago include the
Geology
The island of Taiwan was formed approximately 4 to 5 million years ago at a complex convergent boundary between the Philippine Sea Plate and the Eurasian Plate. In a boundary running the length of the island and continuing southwards in the Luzon Volcanic Arc (including Green Island and Orchid Island), the Eurasian Plate is sliding under the Philippine Sea Plate.
Most of the island comprises a huge fault block tilted to the west.[11] The western part of the island, and much of the central range, consists of sedimentary deposits scraped from the descending edge of the Eurasian Plate. In the northeast of the island, and continuing eastwards in the
The tectonic boundary remains active, and Taiwan experiences 15,000 to 18,000 earthquakes each year, of which 800 to 1,000 are noticed by people. The most catastrophic recent earthquake was the magnitude-7.3
Terrain
The terrain in Taiwan is divided into two parts: the flat to gently rolling plains in the west, where 90% of the population lives, and the mostly rugged forest-covered mountains in the eastern two-thirds.
The eastern part of the island is dominated by five mountain ranges, each running from north-northeast to south-southwest, roughly parallel to the east coast of the island. As a group, they extend 330 km (210 mi) from north to south and average about 80 kilometres (50 mi) from east to west. They include more than two hundred peaks with elevations of over 3,000 m (9,800 ft).[6]
The
The
The ranges to the west of the Central range are divided into two groups separated by the Sun Moon Lake Basin in the centre of the island. The Dadu and Zhuoshui Rivers flow from the western slopes of the Central Range through the basin to the west coast of the island.
The
The Yushan Range runs along the southwestern flank of the Central Range. It includes the island's tallest peak, the 3,952 m (12,966 ft) Yu Shan ('Jade Mountain')[1][17][18] which makes Taiwan the world's fourth-highest island, and is the highest point in the western Pacific region outside of the Kamchatka Peninsula, New Guinea Highlands and Mount Kinabalu.[19]
The
Below the western foothills of the ranges, such as the
Climate
The island of Taiwan lies across the Tropic of Cancer, and its climate is influenced by the East Asian Monsoon. Northern Taiwan has a humid subtropical climate, with substantial seasonal variation of temperatures, while parts of central and most of southern Taiwan have a tropical monsoon climate where seasonal temperature variations are less noticeable, with temperatures typically varying from warm to hot. During the winter (November to March), the northeast experiences steady rain, while the central and southern parts of the island are mostly sunny. The summer monsoon (from May to October) accounts for 90% of the annual precipitation in the south, but only 60% in the north.[21] The average rainfall is approximately 2,600 mm per year.[21]
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Typhoons are most likely to strike between July and October, with on average about four direct hits per year. Intensive rain from typhoons often leads to disastrous mudslides.[21]
Records
Area | Max. temperature | Date | Earliest recording | |
---|---|---|---|---|
°C | °F | |||
Taipei City
|
39.3 | 102.7 | 8 August 2013[22] | 1896 |
Kaohsiung City
|
37.6 | 99.7 | 15 September 2014[23] | 1932 |
Taitung County | 40.2 | 104.4 | 9 May 2004[22] | |
Taoyuan City
|
37.9 | 100.2 | 15 September 2014[24] |
Climate change
Flora and fauna
Before extensive human settlement, the vegetation on Taiwan ranged from
Taiwan is a center of bird endemism (see List of endemic birds of Taiwan).
Before the country's
Taiwan has 65 species of fireflies, the third highest density after Jamaica and Costa Rica. Fireflies are protected and their numbers are increasing, but they are threatened by climate change in the long term.[28]
Taiwan had relatively few carnivores, 11 species in total, of which the Formosan clouded leopard is likely extinct and the otter restricted to Kinmen island.[29] The largest carnivore is the Formosan black bear (Selanarctos thibetanus formosanus), a rare and endangered species.[30]
Nine national parks in Taiwan showcase the archipelago's diverse terrain, flora and fauna. Kenting National Park on the southern tip of Taiwan contains uplifted coral reefs, moist tropical forest and marine ecosystems. Yushan National Park has alpine terrain, mountain ecology, forest types that vary with altitude, and remains of ancient roads. Yangmingshan National Park has volcanic geology, hot springs, waterfalls, and forest. Taroko National Park has a marble canyon, cliff, and fold mountains. Shei-Pa National Park has alpine ecosystems, geological terrain, and valley streams. Kinmen National Park has lakes, wetlands, coastal topography, flora and fauna-shaped island. Dongsha Atoll National Park has the Pratas reef atolls for integrity, a unique marine ecology, and biodiversity, and is a key habitat for the marine resources of the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait.[31]
Natural resources
Natural resources on the islands include small deposits of gold, copper,[32] coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos.[1] The island is 55% forest and woodland (mostly on the mountains) and 24% arable land (mostly on the plains), with 15% going to other purposes. 5% is permanent pasture and 1% is permanent crops.
Because of the intensive exploitation throughout Taiwan's pre-modern and modern history, the island's mineral resources (e.g. coal, gold, marble), as well as wild animal reserves (e.g. deer), have been virtually exhausted. Moreover, much of Taiwan's forestry resources, especially firs were harvested during Japanese rule for the construction of shrines and have only recovered slightly since then. To this day, forests do not contribute to significant timber production mainly because of concerns about production costs and environmental regulations.
Agriculture
The few natural resources with significant economic value remaining in Taiwan are agriculture-associated. Sugarcane and rice have been cultivated in western Taiwan since the 17th century. Camphor extraction and sugar refining played an important role in Taiwan's exports from the late 19th century through the first half of the 20th century.[33] The importance of these industries declined mainly due to the reduction of international demand rather than the exhaustion of related natural resources.[34]
Domestic agriculture (rice being the dominant kind of crop) and
Energy resources
Taiwan has significant coal deposits and some insignificant
Human geography
Taiwan has a population of over 23 million, the vast majority of whom live in the lowlands near the western coast of the island.[5] The island is highly urbanized, with nearly 9 million people living in the
Taiwanese indigenous peoples comprise approximately 2% of the population, and now mostly live in the mountainous eastern part of the island.[39][40] Most scholars believe their ancestors arrived in Taiwan by sea between 4000 and 3000 BC, most likely from southeastern China.[41]
Han Chinese make up over 95% of the population.[42] Immigrants from southern Fujian began to farm the area around modern Tainan and Kaohsiung from the 17th century, later spreading across the western and northern plains and absorbing the indigenous population of those areas. Hakka people from eastern Guangdong arrived later and settled the foothills further inland, but the rugged uplands of the eastern half of the island remained the exclusive preserve of the indigenous peoples until the early 20th century.[43] A further 1.2 million people from throughout China entered Taiwan at the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949.[44]
Environmental issues
Some areas in Taiwan with high population density and many factories are affected by heavy pollution. The most notable areas are the southern suburbs of Taipei and the western stretch from Tainan to Lin Yuan, south of Kaohsiung. By the late 20th century, Taipei suffered from extensive vehicle and factory
Other environmental issues include
Taiwan historically had a serious problem with the illegal dumping of household and industrial waste which became so severe that Taiwan was known as "garbage island." This high level of pollution led to civil and government action, by 2022 the recycling rate was one of the highest in the world at 55%. Community activism was key to this change along with innovations such as garbage trucks which play music.[50]
Illegal extraction by Chinese sand dredging vessels has caused significant damage to the marine environment of Taiwan's outlying areas. The Taiwan Banks are a particularly hard hit target.[51] Bottom trawling is a controversial practice due to the environmental damage it causes. Bottom trawlers with a tonnage under 50 are restricted from trawling within 5km of shore and those over 50 tons are restricted from trawling within 12km of shore. [52] In 2023 the maximum penalty for ocean pollution was raised from US$48,820 to US$3.25 million.[53]
Notes
References
Citations
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- ^ "Land and Climate". Statistical Yearbook of the Republic of China. Statistical Bureau, Republic of China (Taiwan). 2020. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ "Law on the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Continental Shelf of the Republic of China (中華民國專屬經濟海域及大陸礁層法)". Retrieved 21 May 2007.
- ^ "Chapter 3: History" (PDF). The Republic of China Yearbook 2011. Government Information Office, Republic of China (Taiwan). 2011. p. 46. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2012..
- ^ a b "1.1 Number of Villages, Neighborhoods, Households and Resident Population". Monthly Bulletin of Interior Statistics. Ministry of the Interior, Republic of China (Taiwan). November 2012. Archived from the original (XLS) on 29 March 2014.
- ^ a b Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 40.
- ^ Chang, K.C. (1989). "The Neolithic Taiwan Strait" (PDF). Kaogu. 6. translated by W. Tsao, ed. by B. Gordon: 541–550, 569. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
- ^ National Taiwan Normal University, Geography Department. "Geography of Taiwan: A Summary". Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 21 May 2007.
- ^ 台灣海峽——平潭島東端的牛山島 (in Traditional Chinese). 13 May 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
仔細研究地圖發現大陸與台灣兩地最接近的地方至少也有125海里,這個地點就是福建省平潭縣海壇島(即平潭島)東端的——牛山島。
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 46.
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- ^ "The Geology of Taiwan". Department of Geology, National Taiwan Normal University. Archived from the original on 22 February 2008.
- ^ "Geology of Taiwan". Department of Geology, University of Arizona. Archived from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
- ^ "GSHAP Region 8: Eastern Asia". Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
- ^ Theodorou, Christine; Lee, Andrew (3 March 2010). "6.4-magnitude quake hits southern Taiwan". CNN.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2010.
- ^ Yang, Ssu-jui; Huang, Frances (18 February 2016). "Body of last victim of apartment collapse in Tainan found". Focus Taiwan. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 43.
- ^ Reported by Taiwan's National Geographic Information System Steering Committee (NGISSC Archived 21 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine)
- ^ "Tallest Islands of the World – World Island Info web site". Worldislandinfo.com. Archived from the original on 1 February 2017. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), pp. 2, 43.
- ^ a b c Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 45.
- ^ a b Shan, Shelley; Mo, Yan-chih (9 August 2013). "Taipei bakes on hottest day in 117 years". Taipei Times. p. 1. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
- ^ Huang, Chiao-wen; Liu, Kay (15 September 2014). "Taiwan's electricity supplies hit tightest point of the year". Focus Taiwan. Central News Agency. Archived from the original on 3 June 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
- ^ Shan, Shelley (16 September 2014). "Nation sees record high temperatures". Taipei Times. p. 3. Archived from the original on 27 February 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
- ^ "Climate of Taiwan". Travel Tips - USA Today. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- ^ "Taiwan faces watery future: Greenpeace - Taipei Times". www.taipeitimes.com. 25 August 2020. Archived from the original on 26 October 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
- PMID 16591341.
- ^ Davidson, Helen (22 April 2022). "'An ecological miracle': Taiwan's fireflies are flirting in the dark again". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 April 2022. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
- ^ "Otter Conservation in Kinmen". Kinmen County Government. Archived from the original on 21 September 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
- ^ Chiang, Po-Jen; Kurtis Jai-Chyi Pei; Michael R. Vaughan; Ching-Feng Li (2012). "Niche relationships of carnivores in a subtropical primary forest in southern Taiwan" (PDF). Zoological Studies. 51: 500–511. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
- ^ National Parks of Taiwan Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior, ROC (Taiwan).
- ^ Taiwan Panorama (17 July 2008). "Chinkuashih's Gold Ecological Park brings history to life". Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of China (Taiwan). Taiwan Today. Archived from the original on 27 December 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 304.
- from the original on 28 March 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), pp. 160–168.
- ^ Energy Statistics Handbook Archived 25 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Bureau of Energy, Ministry of Economic Affairs, 2010.
- ^ "Taiwan's Energy Policy and Supply-Demand Situation". Bureau of Energy, Ministry of Economic Affairs. Archived from the original on 22 May 2012.
- ^ "Taiwan: metropolitan areas". World Gazetteer. Archived from the original on 9 February 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2012.
- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 49.
- ^ Thomson, John (1898), English: Through China with a camera, archived from the original on 20 January 2022, retrieved 5 December 2017, see: Appendix- The Aboriginal Dialects of Formosa, page 275 – 284
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- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 36.
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- ^ Exec. Yuan (2014), p. 48.
- ^ "Taiwan: Environmental Issues". Country Analysis Brief – Taiwan. United States Department of Energy. October 2003. Archived from the original on 7 October 2006. Retrieved 8 March 2006.
The government credits the APC system with helping to reduce the number of days when the country's pollution standard index score exceeded 100 from 7% of days in 1994 to 3% of days in 2001.
- ^ "Taiwan Country Analysis Brief". United States Department of Energy. August 2005. Archived from the original on 2 February 2007.
Taipei has the most obvious air pollution, primarily caused by the motorbikes and scooters used by millions of the city's residents.
- (PDF) from the original on 6 May 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
In Taiwan's cities, the main source of air pollution is the waste gas exhausted by scooters, especially by the great number of two-stroke engine scooters.
- ^ "The largest coal-fired power plants in the world". esfccompany.com. Archived from the original on 11 July 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ Chiu, Yu-Tzu (26 January 2005). "Forests in Taiwan jeopardized by acid rain: EPA". Taipei Times. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
- ^ Davidson, Helen; Hui Lin, Chi (26 December 2022). "Classical trash: how Taiwan's musical bin lorries transformed 'garbage island'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 December 2022. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
- ^ Chen, Kelvin (7 February 2022). "Taiwan's outlying marine ecology severely damaged by Chinese sand dredging". taiwannews.com.tw. Taiwan News. Archived from the original on 7 February 2022. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
- ^ Everington, Keoni (14 June 2023). "Record 800 kg goblin shark with 6 pups caught off northeast Taiwan". taiwannews.com.tw/. Taiwan News. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ I-chia, Lee (11 June 2023). "President touts changes to ocean-related policies". taipeitimes.com. Taipei Times. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
Works cited
- The Republic of China Yearbook 2014 (PDF). Taipei: ISBN 978-986-04-2302-0. Archived(PDF) from the original on 20 August 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
External links
- Taiwan datums, Open Source Geospatial Foundation Wiki
- National Parks of Taiwan, Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior, Taiwan (ROC)
- Taiwan Pass, Tourism Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and communications, Taiwan (ROC)
- Geographic data related to Geography of Taiwan at OpenStreetMap