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Professor Taira Kawai, Ph.D. in Forestry from the University of Tokyo, was invited by the Taiwan Governor-General's Office to conduct a survey of Alishan in May 1902. He discovered that Alishan's forests were exceptionally healthy, of high quality, and abundant. In his field investigation report, he strongly advocated for development, which drew the Governor-General's attention. In several important meetings and forestry management planning sessions, Dr. Kawai’s opinions had a decisive influence, and he is considered the greatest contributor to Alishan’s forestry development. Accordingly, a monument was erected after his death, and he has been designated a county historical monument. Professor Taira Kawai, Ph.D. in Forestry from the University of Tokyo, was appointed by the Taiwan Governor-General's Office on 8 February 1903 (Meiji 36) to oversee the development of Alishan forest and the surveying of a forest railway line. On 3 October 1904 (Meiji 37), Governor-General’s civil affairs chief Goto Shinpei, Head of the Colonial Development Bureau Shuk, Alishan District Chief Okada, Chief Engineer of the Railway Department Hasekura, Forestry Professor Kawai, and more than thirty officials, plus sixty food porters, formed a large exploration team and reached Alishan’s Mount Wansui in three days. This marked the beginning of the Alishan forestry development project. However, the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War left the Japanese government in financial difficulty, delaying the official start until 1906 (Meiji 39). During the development process, the original plan by a private group led by Fujita was halted midway, and the Governor-General’s Office took over and continued the project. Dr. Kawai, as a forestry consultant for the Taiwan Governor-General’s Office, devoted himself to long-term exploration and planning and played a pivotal role in Alishan’s forestry development. Professor Taira Kawai died in Tokyo, Japan, on 14 March 1931 (Showa 6). To honor his achievements, a monument was erected at Alishan in November 1932 (Showa 7) in his name, and it was officially unveiled on 3 February 1933 (Showa 8).