Nelson Benjamin, The Star 12 Dec 09;
JOHOR BARU: The state government needs to urgently improve the management and condition of its Ramsar sites.
The biggest of the sites spans 7,636ha in Sungai Pulai Johor, while the other two are in Pulau Kukup measuring 647ha and Tanjung Piai (526ha). Ramsar sites are wetlands of international importance designated under the Ramsar Convention.
A visit to Tanjung Piai found rubbish littering the mangrove swamp and trapped among the trees. Besides discarded planks and plastic bags, there was even an old tyre seen here.
The 2008 Auditor-General’s Report had highlighted the unsatisfactory management of the three sites under Johor National Park Corporation (PTNJ) as it did not have proper objectives or scope to carry out activities every year.
The corporation has been tasked with rehabilitating and protecting the Ramsar sites in Johor. The A-G Report found that PTNJ did not have the financial capability to develop and maintain the sites.
The organisation depended primarily on the state government for allocations as its requests to other agencies such as Tourism Ministry and Natural Resources and Environment Ministry for additional funds were rejected.
According to the A-G Report, PTNJ had a deficit balance since 2004, which ballooned to RM3.3mil in 2007.
The Johor state executive council (Exco) had directed PTNJ to use a RM500,000 allocation to hire a foreign consultant to draw up a comprehensive plan for the management of Ramsar sites from 2006 to 2016.
However, the corporation only used RM13,447 of the money from Natural Resources and Environment Ministry to come up with its own development plan in collaboration with a local university and the remaining sum was channelled to other purposes, the report detailed.
It added that PTNJ also did not have an enforcement unit to tackle intrusions and encroachments into the Ramsar sites.
The report noted that cleanliness at the wetlands was poor, stressing that the lack of awareness among tourists, local fishermen and PTNJ workers about environment conservation could lead to pollution and jeopardise the ecosystem.
On a positive note, the Auditor-General found the research activities at the Ramsar sites satisfactory, as 30 projects had been carried out here between 2006 and 2008 which discovered new flora and fauna.
The report recommended seven steps to be taken to improve the situation. They involve outlining clear objectives for conservation, education and research, maintaining cleanliness, issuing compounds to those who encroach into the wetlands and creating sources of income.
