KUANTAN – The Chini Forest Reserve area in Pekan will be expanded from the current 4,600ha to between 6,000ha and 7,000ha, as ordered by Pahang Regent Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah yesterday.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail said the state Land and Mines director’s office and Forestry Department have been asked to take immediate action to identify the additional areas and work towards gazetting the land.
He said the expansion is necessary to increase the percentage of forest cover in order to preserve and conserve the quality of the environment around Tasik Chini, where the water body area alone measures between 200ha and 700ha, depending on the season.
“The expansion will provide greater effectiveness to efforts to meet the requirements of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco),” he said in a statement today.
Wan Rosdy said the Tasik Chini Biosphere Reserve (TCBR) under Unesco’s Man and Biosphere Programme has been recognised as the first biosphere reserve in Malaysia since 2009 based on three main thrusts related to conservation of the ecosystem, logistical supports including research and learning activities, and development related to the local economy.
“To ensure the success of the three main thrusts, TCBR has been divided into three zones, namely the Thrust Zone, Sustainable Zone and Transition Zone, each with different functions. With the expansion to up to 7,000ha proposed by Tengku Hassanal, it is hoped that it could help ensure that the TCBR is implemented successfully and effectively,” he said.
Meanwhile, Wan Rosdy said the state government will also work to speed up replanting works by allocating another RM10 million for reforestation, of which RM250,000 had been spent on the activity.
Apart from that, he said enforcement activities will be further strengthened, including monitoring activities using Light Detection Radar (LIDAR) technology, which will be implemented in an integrated and periodical manner involving state and federal law enforcement agencies.
Yesterday, Tengku Hassanal ordered for the Chini Forest Reserve in Pekan to protect and conserve the flora and fauna in the Tasik China area. – Bernama, June 15, 2021
