Bring back the wild
Tan Cheng Li, The Star 29 Jan 08;
Tree-covered pathways in plantations can provide that extra bit of habitat for wildlife to thrive.
WITH wild habitats dwindling by the day, every little bit of greenery counts, even if it is a mundane-looking plantation with featureless rows of oil palms.
The thing is, these estates do harbour wildlife. Thus it comes as no surprise that when researchers from nature conservation initiative Wild Asia completed a wildlife survey of Tanah Merah Estate in Negri Sembilan, they ended up with a lengthy list, which included 150 species of birds.
Though the animals – such as civet cats, owls, birds, cobras, pythons and macaques – are those commonly seen in oil palm plantations, one particular sighting got the researchers excited: that of the masked finfoot. A winter migrant, this waterbird is seen only in pristine forests and even then, rarely.
That finding left the researchers thinking: if such an uncommon bird could be found within the estate, what else might exist there?
Dr Reza Azmi, Wild Asia founder and a biologist, saw that more could be done to expand wild habitats in the estate, which would then draw in more animals. Thus the idea of a natural wild corridor in the estate was hatched.
With backing from Sime Plantations, owner of the 4,500ha estate some 6km from Sepang, Selangor, the Natural Corridor Initiative took off last November. It helps that the estate has uncultivated land that could be set aside for conservation: some 300ha consisting of a hill that is too steep for planting, waterlogged mangroves which are unsuitable for oil palm, and riparian land (between 5m and 10m of riverbanks are set aside as river reserves).
The green corridor runs along Sungai Janging which courses through the plantation, linking up Bukit Siamang in the middle of the estate with mangroves in the coast, thereby forming a forested pathway amidst the sea of oil palms.
A monoculture farm might not be the richest wildlife site but it is not lacking in conservation value either. Reza points to the need to recognise and value natural habitats outside of protected parks: “Protected areas are not enough. Beyond the endangered wild species, such as elephants, tigers or rhinos, thousands of species survive outside of protected areas. The quality of our environment, be it in urban or rural areas, is dependent on these species.”
In the case of Tanah Merah Estate, its varied landscapes – it has hill forest, riparian land and mangroves – are promising for nurturing biodiversity. This potential is not lost on Reza, who believes that with the natural corridor, the estate would be a lot richer in wildlife 10 years from now.
Re-creating the wilds
When Tanah Merah Estate first opened in the 1920s, pepper shrubs dominated the land. In later years, rubber trees were grown, followed by oil palm. Some old rubber trees still stand on the 240ha of hilly land that is Bukit Siamang. Nesting eagles seek out the tall trees found there.
Oil palm once grew on half of the 55ha of mangroves that form part of the natural corridor. Natural tidal flooding, however, choked the palms and the site had to be abandoned in the late 90s. Mangrove trees have since re-colonised the area. As these mangroves border the Lukut mangrove forest, they are crucial breeding grounds for fish, crustaceans and molluscs.
Sungai Janging, the major irrigation and drainage stream in the estate has, over the years, been transformed into a canal-like conduit. In some sections, oil palms grow right to the river edge. In others, workers spray chemicals to keep riverbanks weed-free.
“You see these neat and manicured riverbanks which are not natural and will not draw wildllife,” says Reza. To restore the natural riparian habitat, he has advised the estate management against spraying weedkillers and to leave the riverbanks wild, for natural regeneration.
Nature will get a helping hand. Since native riverine trees no longer grow there, tree-planting will be carried out along stretches of Sungai Janging. In November, Sime employees and children from the estate school planted over 50 trees on a 50m by 5m plot. Five more plots will be added by June. Estate workers will tend to the seedlings until they mature and nature takes over.
The tree species chosen are those suited to wildlife and riverine and mangrove habitats, such as mengkeb (Croton argyratus), perupok (Lepisanthes alata), kelat gelam (Syzgium cerinum) and merlimau (Suregada multiflora).
“These trees will be sources of seeds for future propagation. So we don’t have to plant throughout the length of the 14km-long stream,” says Reza.
To gauge the health of the river, Wild Asia tied up with Murdoch University to monitor the stream for pollution, fish and aquatic invertebrates.
The natural corridor initiative also includes an environmental education segment, whereby schoolchildren from the estate school and nearby communities join outings to learn about watersheds, rivers and mangroves. Reza ranks this awareness-raising as a priority.
“The natural corridor itself covers a small area and will not increase biodiversity significantly but its knock-on effect is significant since participation in tree-planting and environmental education will inform workers, corporations and communities on conservation.”
He intends the initiative at Tanah Merah to be a model for landscape conservation by the private sector.
“Tanah Merah is not where it stops. We are discussing with Sime Plantations to adopt the idea of natural corridors in its other estates. Eventually, we might be able to link up corridors in several adjacent estates.”
He asserts that the idea works only for existing estates and is not absolute restoration of wild lands. “These corridors in oil palm estates may have diversity but they are not the forest and you will not get forest species. We are not going to get back the siamang here but are creating more space for things to live in and helping to make the site richer.”
And by bringing back a bit of wilderness into plantations, who knows what animals might come and stay?
To find out how you can establish natural corridors in your land, contact Wild Asia at info@wildasia.net or go to www.wildasia.net.
