Typhoon uproots famous tree

I CAN’T SEE YOU: A red cedar tree that became a hit with tourists after being featured in an airline’s TV advertisement was blown over by Typhoon Matmo

By Jason Pan / Staff writer





What is arguably the most famous tree at Taiwan’s east coast region was uprooted during Typhoon Matmo’s onslaught on Tuesday evening, leaving the local government and residents at odds over its fate.

Standing alone next to a road between rice paddies and farmlands against a backdrop of green mountains in Taitung County’s Chihshang Township (池上), the red cedar has become a popular tourist attraction after being featured in EVA Air’s “I See You” international advertising campaign since last year.

The television ad shows Taiwanese-Japanese actor Takeshi Kaneshiro (Jin Cheng-wu, 金城武) riding a bicycle along the rural road and stopping in the shade of the tree to drink a cup of tea.

A group of soldiers try to save the famed “Takeshi Kaneshiro tree” in Chihshang Township, Taitung County, yesterday after it toppled over during the onslaught of Typhoon Matmo. Photo: Wang Hsiu-ting, Taipei Times

The advertisement resulted in visitors flocking to the site’s postcard-perfect surroundings to take photographs with the tree, which has become known as the “Takeshi Kaneshiro tree.”

Yesterday morning, after Typhoon Matmo pummeled the east coast, a local resident found the tree uprooted and lying in a rice paddy.

Some local residents said they are saddened by the tree’s demise, with the Chihshang Township Council and the Taitung County Government vowing to save the tree by replanting it in its original position.

Visitors take pictures of the popular “Takeshi Kaneshiro tree” in Chihshang Township, Taitung County, in this undated photograph. Photo: Wang Hsiu-ting, Taipei Times

However, another group of local residents has voiced their objections, saying that the “Takeshi Kaneshiro tree” should not be saved, because it had caused them many headaches and problems.

The objecting group said that the large daily influx of tourists who visit the site to take photographs with the tree has been detrimental to their small village because it creates traffic congestion, air and noise pollution, and trash that has to be cleaned up, all of which create a financial burden.

“I don’t want to see that tree replanted. Us farmers around here do not want all these tourists bringing all sorts of problems with them,” a local farmer said.

He added that only the government and some businesses reaped the benefits of increased tourism, while the farmers suffered most from having to deal with the crowds of tourists and received no benefits at all.

A Taiwan Tree Protection Alliance (台灣護樹團體聯盟) spokesperson, identified only as “Angela,” said the typhoon was the final straw in the demise of the tree, as the alliance had last year already warned that the “Takeshi Kaneshiro tree” was being abused and maltreated.

“[The base of] this famous tree was surrounded and covered by asphalt, which gets very hot in the sun, and its roots were in bad condition due to the asphalt preventing the circulation of air and water. Many cars and tourists [visiting the site] also played a role in destroying the tree’s surrounding habitat,” Angela said yesterday.

Government officials insisted that they plan to replant the tree, but with local residents and environmental groups opposing such a move, a battle between tourism and economic development versus farmers and the need to protect nature is sure to follow.