KUALA LUMPUR ā Sea turtles have stopped coming to nest at the beach area of the Segari Melintang Forest Reserve on Perakās coast, after the state government allowed quarrying activities in another degazetted portion of the reserve last year, Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) said.
This, and the fact that there are only a handful of coastal hill jungles in Peninsular Malaysia, are reasons why the Perak state government should not have de-listed another compartment of Segari Melintang, SAM field officer Meor Razak Abdul Rahman told Scoop.
The Segari Melintang forest reserve is home to fauna with high commercial value such as the Shorea Glauca, locally known as ābalau lautā, which is found in only four areas in Peninsular Malaysia, he added.
Endangered mammals such as the leopard and sun bear have also been spotted in the forest reserve, as well as protected species like gibbons and wild boar.
āThe area was also a turtle landing site. But since quarrying activities began here, we find that turtles are no longer coming,” Meor told Scoop.
The quarries in Segari Melintang go against the National Land Councilās recommendation to all state governments to refrain from allowing quarrying in forest reserves, he added.
However, land use matters are under the jurisdiction of state governments.
“It’s possible that state governments have bypassed the National Land Council recommendation.
āWhat they will do is de-list an area as a forest reserve to allow these quarrying activities,” Meor said, adding that coastal hill forests tend to have granite reserves.
According to SAMās research, Perak degazetted 548.1 ha of the Segari Melintang forest reserve and published the Perak Gazette notification no. 1681 in May 2023. The reason given was to allow quarrying.
Development allowed with change of land status
The slow decimation of the Segari Melintang forest reserve has been an ongoing issue over the years, according to environmentalists who say its total size is shrinking gradually due to logging and quarrying activities. In 2017, SAM had already begun voicing concerns over approvals by state authorities for quarrying in certain compartments of the forest reserve.
The forest reserve sits within the Pantai Remis state constituency, whose assemblyman, Wong May Ing, said she would have to confirm the existence of gazette notification no. 1681.
The gazette was not easily located from the Perak governmentās or state Land and Mines Officeās websites.
Wong said she will meet representatives from the state government to confirm the matter.
However, she added that she would oppose the decision to degazette the forest reserve if doing so would affect the turtle conservation areas.
“It’s too early for me to say anything, as nothing has been confirmed. But I will take a look at the relevant documents.
“I did come across allegations from environmental groups that a turtle conservation area could be affected. If that is true, I will heavily object to this (the degazettement),” Wong told Scoop.
She also cautioned that there could be confusion over the matter as the public may not be aware of the difference between forest reserves and protected forest reserves.
Protected forest reserves are off-limits for development, but forest reserves, on the other hand, can be developed if a change in land status is gazetted.
Wong said state authorities must plan carefully before allowing any activity in forested areas, even if their status could be converted to allow for development.
āThe Forestry Department must study carefully before deciding what the land can be used for.ā
Wong added that as far as she knew, there are only āone or two quarriesā still operating, as the others have ceased activities.
The degazettement last year has seen environmental groups butt heads with the state government.
Perak science, environment and green technology committee chairman Teh Kok Lim was reported saying last month that he would meet the groups to discuss sand mining and quarrying at the beach area of the Segari Melintang forest reserve. – October 2, 2024