Selangor executive councillor Hee Loy Sian had said yesterday that the delisting of the forest is still on the cards. The forest is occupied by rich wildlife species and is the home of Orang Asli.
Hee said an investigation and discussions with academics and experts were being carried out about degazettement of the forest.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia president Meenakshi Raman said “degazettement or not” should have been moot, as the Selangor legislature had passed a motion not to touch any forest reserves.
“There is no rhyme or reason to await the views of academics before deciding. The decision is a political one, not an academic one.
“The Selangor executive councillor should do the right thing and respect the call of the assembly as well as the calls by civil society and local communities to keep the forest protected and gazetted,” she said.
Yesterday, Hee was reported by Bernama as saying that many aspects had to be taken into account, including the welfare of the Orang Asli in deciding whether the forest ought to remain as a reserve or not.
“I am also taking into account the views of experts and professors from Universiti Putra Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and other universities on whether the forest should be degazetted or not,” he was reported as saying.
On Nov 11, the Selangor assembly approved a motion urging the state government to protect and preserve the gazetted forest reserves in the state.
Hee, at that time, had said a state enactment would require strict public investigation before a permanent forest reserve could be degazetted.
Meanwhile, environmentalist Anthony Tan said Hee’s statement raises the question of how the migration of animals would take place in an event the forest reserve was delisted.
He said the state government must reveal if there is going to be a “catch and release” method to transfer the animals to a different forest.
“Ultimately, who would be responsible for this, the state government or will they pass the buck to the Wildlife and National Parks Department?
“Who will communicate effectively to the affected animals that they are supposed to migrate to the new designated forest? Dr Doolittle?
“To say that degazetting is still on the cards when the state assembly has decided not to sounds presumptuous.”
KLNFR is located in Mukim Tanjung 12, Kuala Langat district. It was gazetted on May 13, 1927. The fate of the forest reserve came to public attention following notice of public investigation by the state Forestry Department early last year.
The notice, which seeks to gain public opinion following the proposed degazetting of the 931ha of swamp forest reserve, sparked controversy among the community, especially the Orang Asli who have depended on the forest for their livelihood for hundreds of years.
The peatland forest is estimated to be around 8,000 years old and environmentalists say the degazettement will endanger such species as the Malayan Sun Bear, Selangor Pygmy Flying Squirrel and Langat Red Fighting Fish.
Association for the Protection of Natural Heritage of Malaysia (PEKA) president Shariffa Sabrina Syed Akil said the latest development comes as no surprise as the state government has been dilly-dallying over the forest reserve issue.
She said the Selangor government had always harped on “town hall” sessions on degazetting permanent forests since time immemorial, and over the years these have proven to be a waste of money and time.
Shariffa said there was one such session on the KLNFR in early 2020, where key technical agencies such as the Selangor Wildlife and National Parks Department was absent from the meeting.
She said excuses such as public investigations and town hall sessions ought to be stopped when it came to matters related to permanent forest reserves, as it should remain as it is.