Wong: Putrajaya should change law, force public hearings on forest reserves

 

Bukit Lanjan assemblyperson Elizabeth Wong today urged Putrajaya to amend the law to compel state governments into holding public hearings on proposals to degazette forest reserves.

In a statement, Wong (above) said it was "heartening" to note that Putrajaya was urging state governments to do so as part of the 12th Malaysia Plan, however, she warned that "(words were) oftentimes not enough".

"In the spirit of the 12th Malaysia Plan, which is clear in its endeavour for Climate Resilience and the Conservation of Biodiversity, the government cannot wait for states to do the necessary.

"It has to amend the National Forestry Act and find ways to compel the states to adopt the law, including through financial incentives to preserve and to maintain existing inventory of forest reserves," she added.

Wong said there was only one state in the country which has such provision, which is Selangor.

In 2011, as a member of the state cabinet, she was the architect of a bill to amend the National Forestry Act (Adoption) Enactment 1985 compelling the state to hold public hearings before removing forest reserves from the state gazette.

This legislation was crucial in the defence of the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve, which the state government wanted to sell to developers.

The public hearing was conducted in September 2020 which generated public awareness of the issue. In May this year, the state cabinet quietly went ahead to remove the forest from the state gazette, only revealing the fact when forced to do so in the Selangor legislative assembly.  

Rep proposes a '5-star' criteria 

Wong said every state government viewed forests and green land as idle and unrealised state revenue. This, she stressed, must change.

"In the last 18 months when Malaysians were locked up, the passion of Malaysians to conserve all forests and green areas became a clarion call to all governments.

"The true value of forest reserves is not in ringgit and sens, but in its intrinsic role to allow Malaysians to live a quality life," she said.

In view of this, Wong proposed a "5-star" criteria which Putrajaya can adopt for a sustainable, conservation-focused 12th Malaysia Plan. Her five criteria are:

1. A moratorium on all commercial logging in Malaysia for the next 25 years
2. Any forest to be degazetted must go through a public hearing process
3. Forest reserves must only be degazetted for public interest projects, not for private profit projects
4. All degazetted forests must be replaced with equally good quality forests of equal if not bigger sizes
5. States must actively increase forest reserve acreage every year.

Wong also recommended the establishment of a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) - a levy to help conservation efforts - and an expansion of the National Conservation Trust Fund. 

"This will provide adequate compensatory funds and incentivise conservation activities in the states," she said. - Mkini