13
Nov 2008 - Petaling Jaya, Malaysia: Habitats
of the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros
and the endangered Malayan tiger are under
threat from a plan to clear nearly 19,000
hectares of forest in north-eastern Malaysia.
A Detailed Environmental
Impact Assessment (DEIA) has revealed that
the Terengganu state government has proposed
to extract all commercially valuable timber
in 12,630ha of forest, adjacent to the 6,130ha
of forest reserve currently being cleared
for the construction of two hydropower dams.
The Tembat and Petuang
Forest Reserves also act as a water catchment
area for Tasik Kenyir, the largest man-made
lake in South-east Asia. They are currently
being logged to build the Puah and Tembat
dams and are home to the Sumatran rhinoceros
and Malayan tiger. The forest reserves also
fall within the dam catchment area.
In addition the DEIA,
which was available for public viewing recently,
states that 30 per cent of the existing
elephant population within the project area
will be forced into nearby plantations,
creating more human-elephant conflict.
“Evidence on the ground
also suggests that logging and clearing
of the reservoir area has already proceeded
prior to the approval of the DEIA,” said
Dato’ Dr. Dionysius Sharma, CEO of WWF-Malaysia.
“There seems to be little regard for relevant
laws and the DEIA process.”
A survey conducted as
part of the DEIA has revealed evidence of
the presence of the elusive Sumatran rhinoceros
within the Tembat Forest Reserve, and as
recently as August 2008 a survey by the
Department of Wildlife and National Parks’
Sumatran Rhinoceros Task Force revealed
evidence such as feeding trails and horn
scratch marks.
Both forest reserves
are also habitats for other endangered wildlife
like the Malayan tiger and Malayan tapir,
which are totally protected under the Protection
of Wildlife Act 1972.
Dato’ Dionysius also
expressed his concerns over the anticipated
high erosion rate due to the logging activity
and forest clearing in the area, leading
to deterioration in river water quality.
“The Kelah fish population found in rivers
there will undeniably decrease,” he said.
Kelah has high conservation and commercial
values.
The DEIA report also
states that the deterioration in river water
quality in Sungai Tembat and Sungai Terengganu
Mati will affect eco-tourism and that high
soil erosion and sedimentation will affect
fish biodiversity and spawning grounds.
Dato’ Dionysius further
stated that logging in a dam catchment forest
will increase siltation and could reduce
the dam lifetime in the long run, even if
logging was only carried out during the
construction stage of the dam. “This is
because forests take many years to regenerate
and fully resume their ecosystem function
as water catchment and for soil protection,”
he said.
