Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) said the fire which occurred on the evening of Jan 22 originated from an illegally cleared part of the forest, situated near Batu Maung in Penang island.
SAM said the cleared portion had become a dumping ground for construction waste, disused car parts, and electronic items.
The cleared area was part of a larger 20ha mangrove forest under the custody of the Fisheries Department and owned by the directorate-general of Land and Mines.
The city council had issued a stop-work order for the land after the issue came to light. The land in question was being rented out by the Fisheries Department to a private company.
SAM said the fire which started at the site was doused in short order by volunteer firemen, who prevented the blaze from causing further damage to the forest.
SAM president SM Mohamed Idris said while the fire issue had been settled, how the cleared area was turned into a dumping ground remained unclear.
Idris said a river close to the forest had also turned saline due to the dumping activities. He urged the authorities to explain how lorries were allowed to trespass on federal land, let alone a protected mangrove forest.
“We demand that action be taken against the parties responsible who should also be punished for dumping rubbish there.
“The mangrove forest here should be given better protection as it is the sole surviving mangrove forest in the area.
“The state and federal governments must ensure that the mangroves are fully protected and conserved,” he said.
On Jan 7, NGO Peka submitted a report to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, urging it to investigate why protected mangrove land was rented out to a private company.
Peka claimed that the land measured 2ha out of the 20ha, adding however that the tenants had cleared and reclaimed up to 4ha of the forest.