Taiwan's natural resources

Few natural resources of significant economic value remain in Taiwan. After many decades of mining, almost all metallic minerals, coal, and talc have been depleted in the twenty-first century. Most of the country’s oil, gas, and power needs must be met through importing, although Taiwan aims to develop renewable energy using wind and solar power. In 2019, only 6 percent of total electricity supply in the country was derived from renewable sources. Taiwan’s export-oriented economy depends on the world's global economy for growth.

The Country

Taiwan is an island in East Asia located in the Western Pacific. In 2019, Taiwan’s gross domestic product (GDP) exceeded $1.14 trillion, representing real growth of 2.71 percent from 2018 with a per capita GDP of $24,502.

The island of Taiwan is long and narrow, and a central mountain range, the Chung-yang, travels its length from north to south, covering about one-half the total land area. The most rugged land is found in the eastern part of the island. Because of the mountainous terrain, there are few natural harbors. In the west, a broad plain with connected basins slopes toward the Taiwan Strait. Foothills, with sloping tablelands terraced for rice cultivation, surround the Chung-yang Range and account for nearly 50 percent of Taiwan’s surface area.

Taiwan has few natural resources, including natural gas, limestone marble, asbestos, coal, and their most important natural resource, land. Production of the small remaining amounts of these resources declined substantially from 2009 to 2020, leaving the country heavily dependent on foreign trade. Petroleum and natural gas reserves are located in the northwest. The eastern area has marble deposits. Taiwan’s riverbeds provide sand, gravel, and rock for construction. Because of exploitation, most of Taiwan’s mineral resources have been essentially depleted.

Agriculture

Taiwan’s most important natural resource is its land. Approximately 22.7 percent of Taiwan’s land was suitable for cultivation of agricultural crops in 2018. Taiwan’s main agricultural products include rice, pork, cabbage, sugar cane, milk, eggs, pineapples, vegetables, and tropical fruit. The principal food crop is rice, which is grown along the western plain and in the southern area of the country. There is an overabundance of rice, however, and farmers have been encouraged to grow other, more profitable, crops, such as mushrooms or some hydroponic crops that require only a small amount of space and little initial investment. Other food crops include sweet potatoes, bananas, peanuts, soybeans, and wheat. Agriculture in Taiwan is characterized by high yields, use of irrigation, terracing, and multiple cropping to maximize yields. Taiwanese farmers also use fertilizers extensively.

Although still important for generating revenue through export and as a domestic food source for the Taiwanese population, agriculture has dropped from its predominant role in the economy of Taiwan. Sugar, pineapples, citrus fruits, crude tea, and asparagus are grown on plantations and are primary export and cash crops of Taiwan. Oolong tea, which is famous worldwide for reported health benefits, is produced in Taiwan. Small amounts of cotton, tobacco, jute, and sisal are also produced. Other agricultural exports include fish and other marine products.

Marble

Taiwan’s marble resources are relatively abundant, and the eastern side of Taiwan has marble deposits near the town of Hua-lien. This marble is used mainly in building materials. The term "marble" refers to a variety of limestones and/or dolomites that have undergone metamorphism and are capable of taking on a high polish. Marble is used in sculpture, in building materials, and in many other applications. Pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of very pure limestone. The characteristic swirls and veins of many-colored marble varieties generally result from mineral impurities such as clay, silt, sand, or iron oxides that were originally present as grains or layers in limestone. Green, for example, signals the presence of serpentine, resulting from high-magnesium limestone with silica impurities.

In 2020, Taiwan's production of marble was valued at 2.8 billion Taiwan dollars. Despite this, years of collecting have taken their toll on Taiwan’s supply of natural stone, resulting in the majority of the marble processed in Hua-lien being imported. Heightened environmental awareness has increased restrictions on marble harvesting. In 1961, the government opened a factory that employed Chinese Civil War veterans to process the abundant marble. The business was successful, and stone processing in the area expanded quickly, with companies focusing mainly on cutting huge chunks of marble into shapes and sizes suitable for construction materials. The industry reached its peak in 1994, when Taiwan was one of the largest producers of processed marble in the world, second only to Italy. Afterward, labor-cost competitors pushed the island’s industry into decline, reducing marble processing in Hua-lien by 50 percent. As limestone resources approached depletion after forty years of exploitation, the source of mineral raw material for the cement industry shifted to marble.

The area surrounding Hua-lien, on the east coast of southern Taiwan, is situated on the line of convergence of the Philippine and Eurasian tectonic plates; therefore, stone of beautiful complexity can be found there. Rhodonite is a type of highly valued pink marble stone found mainly in Taiwan, although there is some in Russia and China. The Taiwanese variety is especially attractive because of its unique color and veining.

Wind Power

Taiwan has limited energy resources and meets most of its energy needs through imports. Consequently, the Taiwanese government has encouraged use of renewable energy resources.

In the early twenty-first century, Taiwan’s per-capita carbon dioxide emissions were higher than any other Asian country and among the highest in the world. In 2021, CO₂ emissions reached 228.16 megatons. Development of wind energy sought to reduce carbon dioxide emissions significantly by decreasing the use of coal and natural gas. The potential for wind energy as a renewable resource in Taiwan is high, as Taiwan is rich in both onshore and offshore wind energy resources. An island off the coast of Taiwan, called P’eng-hu, has some of the best available wind resources in the world. Although Taiwan has potential for both onshore and offshore wind farming, the limited land area on the island favors use of offshore wind resources. In 2020, around 0.9 percent of the total energy capacity of the country was sourced from wind.

Coal

Taiwan has limited coal resources. From the early years of the country to the 1980s, coal production played a significant role in Taiwan’s economy, with much active mining of coal in the northern area of Taiwan near the Tatu River. During the initial stages of Taiwan’s economic development, coal was the primary energy source. The power that fueled early industrial development relied mostly on the coal produced domestically in Taiwan. In 1986, coal production was as high as 4.5 million metric tons per year. After this time, coal output decreased progressively each year because of depletion of shallow coal resources, increase in the cost of mining, and difficulties related to the mining operation. Some mines were closed for environmental reasons in 2020, and plans were put in place by parliament in January 2021 to decommission the Taichung coal-fired power plant by 2035.

Imported coal, around 63.52 million metric tons in 2020, mainly from Indonesia, Australia, and China, was used in Taiwan for generating electric power and used in the steel, cement, and petrochemical industries. The country also produced around 5.608 million tons of coal in 2022 and maintained a proven reserve of 1 million tons. However, its need for imports of coal was evident, as consumption reached 66.855 million tons.

Petroleum and Natural Gas

Petroleum and natural gas reserves of Taiwan are located in the northwest near the small city of Hsin-chu and the town of Miaoli. Petroleum and natural gas are produced mainly from land-based oil wells, which, as of the early twenty-first century, were concentrated in the western part of Taiwan. These wells, mostly gas-producing, were mainly located in Tiezhenshan, Chinshui, Chuhuangkeng, Yougheshan, and nearby areas. Offshore oil production began in 1980 in the oil-gas field of Changkan off the coast of Hsin-chu. However, exports of petroleum in 2018 were zero, while exports of refined petroleum products totaled 349,600 barrels per day in 2015.

Most of Taiwan’s crude-oil imports, 886,200 barrels per day in 2018, came from the Persian Gulf. West African countries are also important suppliers. To ensure uninterrupted supply, Taiwan’s oil refiner regulations require maintenance of stocks that represent no fewer than 60 days of consumption, which totaled 998,100 barrels per day in 2019. Refiner-held strategic petroleum stocks are common in Asia, and Taiwan’s policy is similar to those of other Asian countries, namely Japan and South Korea. Most of the exploring, producing, importing, refining, and marketing of petroleum and natural gas is conducted by the Chinese Petroleum Corporation (CPC). Since 1987, however, privately owned and operated gas stations for marketing gasoline and diesel oil have been allowed. Offshore areas in the Taiwan Strait have been explored for developing offshore petroleum and gas operations.

Natural gas production at 150.59 million cubic meters in 2019 greatly exceeded consumption, which totaled 22.01 billion cubic meters, and in 2022, 63.747 billion cubic meters of natural gas reserves were reported and consumption was 63.747 billion cubic meters.

Sand and Gravel

Taiwan has many riverbeds that provide sand, gravel, and rock for the construction industry. Historically, most of Taiwan’s sand and gravel is derived from rivers, and sand-gravel is one of most important raw minerals of Taiwan. Sand and gravel resources are classified into four groups: fluvial sand-gravel, terrestrial sand-gravel, rock fragments, and marine sand-gravel. Sand-gravel is produced in all sixteen counties of Taiwan. Sand and gravel yield the highest output value in Taiwan’s mineral industry.

Taiwan has a great demand for sand and gravel. Initially, exploitation was focused on the sand and gravel from rivers; this was expanded to sand and gravel and rock fragments from land and later sea resources. Rivers are dredged to collect sand and gravel. Taiwan’s construction industry needs millions of cubic meters of sand every year to maintain construction projects, water conservation, and transportation infrastructure. In 2000, Taiwan began to import sand and gravel from China to meet its needs; almost one-third of market needs were met by imports from China, and in 2006, 26 million tons were imported. However, in late 2006, further export bans from China caused a shortage of sand and gravel in Taiwan, and as total imports of sand from China dropped to only 2 million tons per year, costs increased 37 percent. In 2007, China banned sand shipments to Taiwan, which reduced total imports of sand by 80 percent. The country attempted to lessen their reliance on China for sand imports beginning in 2009; however, reliance remained until 2022 when China implemented sanctions in retaliation for a visit from US Representative Nancy Pelosi. Though Taiwan expelled thousands of Chinese sand transport and dredging vessels in 2020, in 2022, China reportedly began dredging rivers in Taiwan to supplement their supply of sand.

Water

In addition to imported fossil fuels and nuclear power, Taiwan uses hydropower to generate electricity. The country has many rivers, with origins in the mountainous central part of the island—there are 129 rivers in Taiwan, all of which are short and steep, with small drainage basins and rapid water flow. Many of the rivers are tapped for hydroelectric power. The Cho-shui River (also spelled Zhuoshuimeaning "turbid water"), more than 116 miles or 186 kilometers long and the longest river in Taiwan, is the most heavily tapped for hydroelectricity, as it can generate around 28,900 cubic meters of water per second.

Water is also important to Taiwan's water-intensive farming and industrial sectors. In one form or another, Taiwan is inundated with fresh water over the course of a year. Rain falls steadily throughout winter, followed by spring downpours and typhoons in summer. Approximately 2,500 millimeters of rainfall are recorded annually, with the majority on the east side of the island. Of the 90 billion metric tons of water Taiwan receives as rain each year, about 65.6 billion become surface water, the majority of which quickly flows straight into the sea. About 14 billion metric tons of rainwater remain on the island long enough to be used. However, the geography of Taiwan, with its spectacular mountain ranges over a relatively small area of land, complicates water collection and storage. As severe climate change becomes a reality and begins to disrupt traditional weather patterns, it may affect water availability.

Other Resources

The Chung-yang Range, the tallest mountain range in Taiwan, and the eastern coastal range contain deposits of gold and copper. The Chinkuashih gold mine in northern Taiwan was successful in the 1940s, but mining operations were halted in 1988. Fongtian jade is a semi-precious stone that was once abundant in Taiwan and mined in the 1960s and 1970s. In the early 1970s, almost every Fongtian household was involved in mining or processing of Taiwan jade, making the area one of the richest places in Taiwan. However, carelessness and indiscriminate blasting in search of quicker profits damaged the jade mines irreparably, and the industry went into decline in the mid-1970s.

Though previously more than 90 percent, in 2023, about one-half of Taiwan was forested, but timber production was insufficient to meet domestic demand. The main timbers are oak, cedar, hemlock, bamboo, and rattan. Timbers most useful for building were sparse in the early twentieth century.

In the 2010s, onshore and deep-sea fishing yielded about 80 percent of total catch; the remainder came from along the coast and from cultivated ponds. Mackerel and various types of tuna are the leading marine species caught. In 2022, Taiwan's Tainan City announced the introduction of new technology, which will aid the city's 14,000 hectares of fish farms to operate more efficiently for a lower cost. However, in August of the same year, China banned imports of Taiwanese fish farm products, citing the discovery of chemicals in the farmed fish.

Limestone is also an important resource in Taiwan, with production averaging 1398.25 thousand metric tons from 1981 to 2022. More than 90 percent of limestone is used to make cement; at one time, Taiwan ranked first in the world in cement production, but by 2021, China, India, and Vietnam were the largest producers globally. In October 2022, Taiwan produced around 858 thousand metric tons of cement.

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