Raja Nazrin disturbed by poaching in the Royal Belum Rainforest

Chan Li Leen, The Star 22 Oct 09;

IPOH: The Raja Muda of Perak, Raja Nazrin Shah, is disturbed by the alarming decline of large mammals at the Royal Belum Rainforest due to inadequate laws and ineffective enforcement.

He said poaching of wildlife including tigers and elephants was still a major problem at Royal Belum despite its status as a protected forest.

“This indicates that despite the existence of numerous laws pertaining to wildlife protection, forestry and other aspects of natural resource management, they are either inadequate or they suffer from ineffective enforcement,” he said when opening a conference to develop an Integrated Master Plan for the Belum-Temengor Tropical Rainforest here yesterday.

Raja Nazrin, said there were compelling reasons for the development of a master plan as Belum-Temengor was the largest remaining contiguous tract of unprotected rainforest in peninsular Malaysia.

“And although Royal Belum has been gazetted a state park, its adjacent neighbour, Temenggor, is not within the boundaries of national protection. This means that it is defenceless against obliteration,” he said.

He said logging and indiscriminate development remained the foremost challenges to the continuity of Malaysian rainforests, thus jeopardising the continued existence of local species and sites.

Raja Nazrin said while he understood the need to proceed with development programmes to lead people out of poverty towards improved living standards, he caution against unfettered exploitation of the dwindling forest resources.

“Are our forest worth more dead than alive?” he asked.

Forests, he noted, were worth a lot in exchange for its timber, for industry and for agriculture, but in the long run, the price for it was too heavy for both the people and the country to pay.

“The price we pay is the change in climate, increased carbon dioxide levels, diminished fresh water supply, the depletion of a large proportion of our living species, the threat of natural disaster, and hence, our own existence,” he added.

He urged the authorities to explore the possibility of enacting special legislation to ensure a comprehensive and continued preservation of Belum-Temengor alongside its development plan as a tourism product.

The two-day conference is organised by the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority, Perak state government and the Pulau Banding Foundation.

Raja Nazrin: Treasures of Belum forest left unprotected
P. Chandra Sagaran, New Straits Times 22 Oct 09;

IPOH: Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah has called for special laws to be enacted to continue protecting and preserving the Belum-Temenggor tropical rainforest amid plans to promote it as a tourism product.

He said with global climate change and a decline in the number of protected species in the forest due to poaching and extinction, it was necessary that well-planned policies were implemented to safeguard the rainforest.

Opening a conference, "Towards the Development of an Integrated Master Plan for Belum-Temenggor Tropical Rainforest" here yesterday, Raja Nazrin expressed concern at the lack of enforcement by the authorities of existing laws to protect this last frontier.

"Royal Belum State Park is protected, but Belum-Temenggor is the largest remaining contiguous tract of unprotected rainforest in Peninsular Malaysia, and it is not within the boundaries of national protection.

"Poaching is a major problem in the area.

"Our large mammals are declining at an alarming rate and some face the threat of extinction in the near future.

"This is happening despite existing laws on wildlife protection, forestry and other aspects of natural resource management.

"This means ineffective enforcement."

Raja Nazrin said for Malaysia, like other developing nations, the race towards economic progress had tipped the balance away from efforts to tackle conservation issues.

Logging and indiscriminate development, he said, were challenges that could jeopardise the continued existence of precious species and sites.

He said in the long run the price to pay would be a change in climate, increase in carbon dioxide level, lack of fresh water supply, depletion of a large proportion of living species and the threat of natural disaster.

"We need to simultaneously pursue economic development while preserving the balance of nature."

Malaysia, he said, could draw from the experience of others, and cited a few examples, including that of the Danum Valley in Sabah, which is renowned as a research haven that has attracted researchers from universities and institutions worldwide.


Studies done at Danum Valley, he said contributed not only to the science base but also to the conservation and sustainable use of rainforests in general.

Raja Nazrin hoped the conclusion of the conference would contribute towards the development of an effective plan of action.

The two-day conference, organised by the state government, the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority and Pulau Banding Foundation, is attended by 180 participants from government departments, non-governmental organisations and private enterprises.