LANGKAWI – Activists and tour operators have urged for an ecologically sustainable approach to the development of The Langkasuka, a RM40 billion project scheduled to begin development in June this year.
Last year, the Kedah government announced the ambitious project, to be jointly developed over 20 years by Widad Business Group Sdn Bhd and Dubai-based Bin Zayed International LLC, to bolster the holiday island’s faltering tourism sector.
Langkawi Malaysian Nature Society chairman Eric R. Sinnaya said the island has already suffered from numerous development projects that failed to deliver on promises of greater returns on tourism and economic development.
“We must ask ourselves what sort of destination we want Langkawi to become. One which is rich in ecologically based tourism or one which is driven just by commercialism, which may come at the expense of the environment,” Sinnaya said.
The Langkasuka will cover 2,000 acres near the Langkawi International Airport at Padang Matsirat, where they will build villas and luxury condominiums, a hotel, shopping malls, and a tournament-ready golf course in its first phase.
The developers also plan to build 99 reclaimed islands at an estimated cost of US$9.6 billion (RM40.3 billion).
Naturalist Irshad Murbarak warned of the consequences to Langkawi’s natural environment if the developers do not practice the highest ecological and sustainability standards.
“My foremost concern is the landfill materials. Langkawi is highly dependent on tourism and, in particular, eco-tourism. We have lost more than 50% of our natural heritage,” he said.
“Every remaining… natural forest and its wildlife is very precious to our ecotourism industry. No forest reserve should be degazetted to allow rock, soil, sand to be mined for that development.”
Veteran tourism operator, Ahmad Pishol Isahak, said any project planned for Langkawi must also ensure spillover benefits for the local population, including jobs and increased spending by tourist arrivals.
“We want better yield rates from tourism otherwise, we will remain entrapped with dwindling profit margins even when records show many tourists visiting,” he said. – The Vibes, March 16, 2022
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