Can we recover from the Covid-19 crisis in a greener way? Can we provide work for the many jobless while creating a more eco-friendly Malaysia? This is the way forward that many countries in the world are looking at and not just in the West mind you.
For example, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan has a “green stimulus” programme to provide 63,000 jobs especially to labourers who lost their work during the virus lockdown. They will be planting saplings as part of the country’s “10 billion tree tsunami” programme to deal with climate change threats - heat waves, floods and droughts.
In my previous article, I wrote about how we can recover from the Covid-induced economic downturn by learning from America’s New Deal which provided unemployed Americans with millions of jobs during the 1930s Great Depression. Another suggestion was to think of creative solutions such as jobs to repair all potholes and dilapidated rural schools.
Pakistan’s example is like the shampoo, Rejoice 2-in-1, providing work while helping the environment. Can we do it? Up to two million Malaysians may lose their jobs because of how the pandemic has hit our economy. What if some of them are re-employed (on short contracts) by the government to plant trees in our overly hot cities or even to do reforestation of degraded state lands?
In contrast, the newly-minted PAS-led Kedah state government seems to have no new ideas for development except for short-term profits from logging. The previous Pakatan Harapan state government under Mukhriz Mahathir had wisely cancelled logging concessions in the crucial Ulu Muda forests, an area which provides most of the water for two states, Kedah (96 percent) and Penang (80 percent), supplying both rice fields and high-tech factories.
Anyone who has lived in Kedah will know the state’s climate is similar to Thailand with a distinct hot, dry season and this is when it’s crucial for water stored in forest soils to slowly seep back into rivers and dams.
The bigger questions are now that people around the world have breathed in fresher air, seen cleaner rivers and heard the birds sing again during lockdowns, do we want to return to the polluted and noisy past? Will the billions in stimulus money be used just to get back to business as usual or to create something better and greener? This is what’s pushing Europe's “Build Back Better” campaign.
For example, to avoid virus infections in overcrowded metro trains, Paris is encouraging cycling in a big way. It will create 280km of temporary bicycle lanes (called "corona cycle-ways") by cordoning off roads, spend 300 million euros to build 750km of new lanes, mainly along metro train lines, give 50 euros for bike repairs (thus providing jobs for bicycle shops) and give workers 400 euros as a biking transport allowance (a stimulus payment direct to consumers).
Britain has also announced a plan worth two billion pounds (RM10.7 billion) to promote walking and cycling. Singapore will double its bicycle lanes to 800km by 2023, and also provide shower and parking facilities for cyclists.
While cycling is less popular in Malaysia, the government should consider building more dual-use bicycle/motorcycle lanes in our big cities as a form of green stimulus spending. This will encourage more car drivers to switch to two-wheelers, thus reducing both traffic jams and pollution. Let’s remember that air pollution has been linked to lung diseases, heart attacks, strokes and yes, higher fatalities from Covid-19.
These lanes can be built on under-utilised river banks or along MRT/LRT lines and will not only help the environment and encourage healthy exercise (for cyclists) but also create construction jobs. And, of course, it will improve road safety for motorcyclists who suffer the most road accidents. Since this Perikatan Nasional government claims to defend the Malays, surely they are aware which ethnic group suffers the most from motorcycle deaths?
The way we live and travel can become greener too. The movement control order has shown that many jobs can be done from home, thus reducing traffic and air/noise pollution. Kuala Lumpur folks may soon be able to enjoy country living in towns such as Slim River, Tampin, Sekinchan, Karak and Port Dickson. If they are required to come into the office, say once a week, they should be encouraged to take the train or bus to the city.
If Internet broadband, schools and train/bus services can be improved nation-wide, small towns will see a revival with more people, money, businesses, jobs and ideas (perhaps even Cappucino/cake shops!) thus spreading development to a wider area. Urban folks will enjoy cheaper house prices while the urban load on the Klang Valley will be relieved.
This virus episode should also make us reevaluate organic farming. Agriculture in this country is such that there are some people who want to farm (such as those who grow pomelos and star-fruits) but have no access to land, while those with good land, leave 120,000 hectares of it idle. Sadly, as in many things about this country, there is an unspoken racial dimension.
In this time of crisis, can we do away with the old ethnic barriers and open up more lands, especially for organic farming? As health awareness grows, there is ever more demand for chemical-free food. Hopefully, creating more organic farms will lower prices of poison-free fruits and vegetables, provide jobs to the unemployed and boost our health.
Another aspect of a green revival is to treat nature, animals and farmland with more respect. Viruses such as Sars, Mers, Ebola and Nipah all came from animals with Covid-19 believed to have originated from bats, possibly via pangolins. For years, there were many warnings about the illegal wildlife trade on pangolins so the Covid-19 crisis is, I suppose, nature’s way of saying “I told you so but you didn’t listen.”
The Nipah virus of 1998 was believed to have come from fruit bats which had lost their wild feeding grounds after massive forest clearing and fires. The bats then encroached orchards, which were near pig farms, and from there the virus got to humans.
This example shows the danger of widespread destruction of animal habitats such as forests and caves (where bats live). But before anyone suggests killing off all bats, please remember that they perform a free pollination service for our fruit trees, including those precious durians.
There are other examples. The clearing of forests in Liberia, Africa, for oil palm led wild mice to encroach on human settlements which then gave rise to the Lassa virus. HIV is linked to the hunting of monkeys in central African forests. And deforestation in South America pushes the transmission of rabies from vampire bats to cattle and humans.
When we see this big picture, Pakistan’s programme of creating new forests is important not only to fight climate change and create jobs but also to prevent future outbreaks of strange diseases.
In summary, the virus crisis can be a golden opportunity for us to reset our society in a greener way while providing much-needed work. Let’s not repeat past mistakes but instead revive our society and economy in a better, healthier way.
ANDREW SIA is a veteran journalist who likes teh tarik khau kurang manis. You are welcome to give him ideas to brew at tehtarik@gmail.com. - Mkini
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