Move to Limit Development so Highlands Stay Green

Move to Limit Development so Highlands Stay Green
Posted on: Tuesday, 5 August 2008, 00:00 CDT

By B. Suresh Ram

KUANTAN: Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob said the time has come to place limits on Cameron Highlands' development and land openings for vegetable farming.

The move was to ensure that its ecology, environment and habitat could be preserved for future generations, he added.

Opening a seminar on scientific expedition findings in Cameron Highlands here yesterday, he felt that the hill station had been overdeveloped over the years.

He urged the Cameron Highlands district council and state forestry department to step up efforts to curb illegal opening of land in the highland, particularly for vegetable farming.

"Enough is enough... Cameron Highlands is overdeveloped."

He added that despite this, Cameron Highlands remained one of the major eco-destinations in the state and last year, it attracted about 500,000 visitors.

He said new locations such as the Cameron Highland Mountain Park was being developed by the state's Forestry Department as a means to further boost eco-spots in the highlands.

On the illegal opening of forest land in the state, he said it only constituted one per cent of such land licensed to be opened.

"However, if this is not seriously looked into, then the future generation will lose out."

He said Pahang was still covered by huge tracts of forested areas covering 1.98 million ha, which made up 55.09 per cent of the state.

Of the figure, 1.48 million ha or 41.30 per cent is made up of permanent forest reserve and potential forest reserves.

In addition, there is also the Taman Negara and Wildlife Preserves which make 0.33 million ha or 9.2 per cent of the state, while government forest land make up 0.17 ha or 4.6 per cent.

"This means that Pahang is still covered by forest canopy from the coastal sea side and river mouths right up to its highlands," he said.

Peninsular Malaysia Forest Department director-general Datuk Seri Azhar Muda, in his speech, said a scientific expedition in May last year saw some new discoveries, including a new bat species from the genus Tadarida and three new tree frog species from the genus Philantus.

"Several bird species, which were usually found in the low lands, are now found in Cameron Highlands," he said.

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Source: New Straits Times