Among the few surviving green enclaves left in the Klang Valley is the Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve, located northwest of Kuala Lumpur.
It takes around half an hour from the city centre to arrive at its northeastern boundary at Templer Park while its southeast end is at Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), both of which are popular hiking trails.
From Google satellite images, Bukit Lagong looks like the Apple logo which has been bitten - its west part has been cut down, and Kampung Orang Asli Hulu Kuang is located in a vulnerable area.
Rimba Disclosure Project (RDP) recently revealed that the “green apple” will get more bites as additional forest land, the size of 887ha or 1,657 football fields, will be cut down to give way to quarries.
State GLCs involved in quarrying
RDP, a watchdog that collates and tracks deforestation throughout the nation, revealed that the forest reserve lands in Rawang and Sungai Buloh areas were being sold online.
A further investigation by Malaysiakini revealed that three developers are linked to the Selangor state government.
Two of them are government-linked companies (GLC) fully owned by the state government - Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated (MBI) and Permodalan Negeri Selangor Berhad (PNSB), both chaired by Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.
The third developer is owned by Koperasi Jabatan Perhutanan Negeri Selangor Berhad. According to its website, it is open for former or current employees of the Selangor Forestry Department to join.
Development plan signed by Forestry director
RDP found that Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve lands are being sold for RM150,000 per acre on the EdgeProp website.
In total, 40.468 hectares of forest reserves are being sold on the website for quarry purposes.
A map produced by the Selangor Forestry Department is attached to the sale listing, and it shows that 27 plots of Bukit Lagong will be developed as quarries.
Selangor Forest Department director Mohd Ridzuwan Endot has signed the quarry development plan.
Destroying the state’s lung and natural ‘sponge’
By using satellite analysis, RDP found that the proposed quarry area is still intact. It remains a high-quality forest that has not seen any degradation since 1985.
The forests are highly important for the Klang Valley ecosystem as it functions as the state’s lung and natural “sponge”, which prevents floods.
“Based on Global Forest Watch data, this area sequesters 1,692 tonnes of CO2 (carbon dioxide) per year," RDP reported.
The scientists warned that the forest plays a very effective role in controlling flood problems by covering the soil surface from erosion and delaying the passage of rainwater to streams and rivers.
If we lose these natural “sponges” which can absorb rainwater due to deforestation, when it rains heavily, the drains will be overcapacity, resulting in frequent flooding.
State secrets?
RDP complained that this is the first time that this quarry plan has been released to the public, indicating a total lack of transparency on the part of the state Forestry Department.
In July this year, PKR’s Bukit Lanjan assemblyperson Elizabeth Wong requested the Selangor State Legislative Assembly to list down the current active quarry projects in the state forest reserve lands.
In a written reply, the state government said there were only eight active quarry projects in Selangor’s forest reserve areas, six of them located in Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve.
The earliest quarry permit was granted in 1992, while the latest quarry permit was granted in 2002.
Meanwhile, Otai Reformasi lately revealed that the group filed an application under the Freedom of Information (State of Selangor) Enactment and requested the state government to disclose information on quarry activities in Bukit Lagong.
However, in April 2022 the secretariat office of the Selangor state government replied that it cannot disclose the information as it is classified as “confidential and secret” under the Official Secrets Act 1972.
Only one EIA report was submitted
The Environmental Quality (Prescribed Activities)(Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 2015 states that quarry projects need to prepare and submit environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports.
However, among the 27 quarry developers listed on the Forestry Department’s map, RDP found that only one developer submitted an EIA report.
The developer is The Greatest Eco Park Holding Sdn Bhd, which plans to operate a 40-hectare quarry in Bukit Lagong.
According to the Department of Environment’s website, the EIA report was submitted on Feb 10 last year and has been approved.
Malaysiakini visited the Selangor Environment Department in Shah Alam to request the EIA report. However, an officer said their library is under renovation and declined the request.
Malaysiakini has also reached out to Selangor MB’s office and the state executive councillor (Environment and Orang Asli Affairs) Hee Loy Sian to get their comments.
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