Borneo ‘a major deforestation front’

Source: The Star

Published on 4th May, 2015 by Patrick Lee

PETALING JAYA: Up to 22 million hectares of forest in Borneo are under threat of being felled by 2030, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has warned.

The combined area, covering forests in Malaysia and Indonesia, is nearly twice the size of Sarawak or the peninsular.

The WWF’s Saving Forests at Risk report describes it as “a major deforestation front”.

Although much of the deforestation is expected to be in Kalimantan, the report also roughly zoned three areas in Sabah and Sarawak.

According to the report, these areas were in danger of being logged or being converted into oil palm plantations.

Wanton dumping of old tyres spoil the environment

Source: Borneo Post online

Published on 3rd May, 2015 by Irene C

LITTLE Nemo was going about looking for food among the various species of sea anemones — swimming around in search of his favourites — zooplankton, algae and undigested foods — from the host anemones.

Suddenly, there was a movement in the water, caused by something, round and black, with a hole in the centre, falling onto the seabed.

Nemo swam closer and saw more of the round black things settling on the seabed. Their undulating movements, caused by the buoyancy of the saline sea water, scattered the sand in swirl, sending air bubbles to the surface.

Once the sand had settled, Nemo swam closer to inspect the round black things, and was overwhelmed by a powerful stench he had never experienced before.

Months came and went, most of these round black things were still there — some got swept elsewhere by strong undercurrents while some stuck to the corals.

A year had passed, the corals, smothered by the round black round things, died a slow death. The growth of the marine invertebrates became stunted and parts broke off when they became wedged between the numerous coral branches. Some of the sea anemones were starving because Nemo no longer came to feed them.

Cloud seeding as dams dry up in Johor

Source: The Star

Published on 1st May, 2015 by Yee Xiang Yun

Sungai Lebam Dam in Kota Tinggi.

KULAIJAYA: The water level at several dams in Johor have dropped below the critical level, affecting more than 157,000 consumers.

Johor Water Regulatory Body (Bakaj) director Abdul Rashid A. Rahman said the water levels at the Sultan Iskandar dam in Masai, Sungai Lebam dam in Kota Tinggi and Congok dam in Mersing have fallen below their critical levels due to lack of rain from the end of last year.

The Sultan Iskandar dam was at 20.96m, well below the critical mark of 23.5m and can only last for another 72 days. It supplies water to some 140,000 households in the Masai area.

The Sungai Lebam dam had 10.5m of water, below the 12.27m critical level. The Congok dam was at 4.5m, which is its critical level.

In a bid to overcome the problem, the state is now carrying out a series of cloud seeding to increase the water levels at all 15 dams in the state.

Abdul Rashi said that the seeding operations would be carried out over 10 days to increase the water levels by 10% to 30%. The cloud seeding began on Tuesday.

Greenpeace petition to President Joko Widodo for a Haze-free Southeast Asia

“Shortly after taking office, Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) made a visit to investigate the causes of the annual smoke haze, visiting Riau, Indonesia, on November 27th 2014. There, he witnessed the devastating peatland draining for palm oil and pulp plantations that leads to the fires and haze which have plagued the province for 17 years, and continue to affect people in Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and throughout Southeast Asia. Before leaving Riau, he promised to solve the problem.”

Read more information about the petition here

Officials: Sumatran rhino is extinct in the wild in Sabah

Source: Mongabay

Published on 23rd April, 2015 by Jeremy Hance

Malaysian officials admit the Bornean rhino may only be represented by three surviving captive animals

Tam, here at Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in Sabah, may be the world’s last male Bornean rhino and one of the last Sumatran rhinos. Photo by: Jeremy Hance.

There are no Sumatran rhinos left in the wild in the Malaysian state of Sabah, confirmed Masidi Manjun, the Tourism, Culture and Envi­ronment Minister, over the weekend. In 2008, conservationists estimated there were around 50 rhinos in the state. Five years later, it dropped that estimate to just ten. Now, it’s admitted the awful truth: the wild rhino is very likely gone.

“We are facing the prospect of our Sumatran rhinos going extinct in our lifetime,” Manjun noted at an environment seminar.

Sabah’s rhino is a distinct subspecies of Sumatran rhino, known as the Bornean rhino (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis harrissoni), and it looks increasingly possible that the Bornean rhino may only be represented by three surviving individuals, all of which are held in fenced, natural conditions at the Borneo Rhinoceros Sanctuary (BRS) in Sabah. These include one male, Tam, and two females, Iman and Puntung.

“If numbers of baby Sumatran rhinos can quickly be boosted in the coming few years, there is still hope to save the species from extinction,” said John Payne, the Executive Director of the Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA) and one of the world’s top experts on the species. “The only way now to achieve that is to use in vitro fertilization to produce the embryos and to have a few fertile females in well-managed fenced facilities, under excellent care, as the surrogate mothers.”

Last-Ditch Attempt By Malaysia To Prevent Sumatran Rhinoceros’ Extinction

Source: Bernama

Published on 31st March, 2015

KOTA KINABALU, March 31 (Bernama) — Malaysia has opted to prevent extinction of Sumatran Rhinoceros through application of advanced reproductive technology.

Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Datuk Seri G. Palanivel said Malaysia in particular the Sabah government will make a last-ditch attempt to create a Sumatran rhino embryo in the laboratory.

In this regard, the government has turned to specialists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Germany) and Avantea laboratories (Italy).

Also involved in the initiative are local financial supporter Sime Darby Foundation and non-governmental organisation Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA).

“In 2014, preliminary attempts were made in Europe using Sumatran rhino eggs and sperm from Sabah, while this year we plan to pursue this effort in Malaysia through further collaboration,” he said.

Indonesia, Malaysia compete over joint office for haze

Source: AsiaOne

Published on 31st March, 2015 by Margareth S. Aritonang

Indonesia is in a race with Malaysia for leadership of the upcoming ASEAN secretariat that will coordinate efforts to reduce transboundary air pollution caused by land and forest fires in the region.

“We are competing with Malaysia over this centre. We want it to be here instead of in Kuala Lumpur,” Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar told the House of Representatives Commission IV on Monday.

During the meeting with the commission, which oversees agriculture, plantations, maritime affairs, fisheries and food, Siti assured lawmakers the Indonesian government was making all the necessary preparations for gaining approval to host the centre from all ASEAN countries.

“We have also asked the Foreign Ministry to help in the effort,” she said.

The government’s proposal quickly gained support at the House due to the benefits it would bring to the country’s efforts to battle haze.

The establishment of the ASEAN coordinating centre on transboundary haze pollution is required by the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution that Indonesia ratified in September last year.

As the last signatory, the government proposed to take charge of the joint secretariat that will coordinate information, reports and policies needed to address the problems raised by transboundary haze pollution in the region.

‘Bond Girl’ Michelle Yeoh to be Sabah wildlife conservation advocate

Source: Malay Mail online

Published on 30th March, 2015 by Julia Chan

Yeoh (right) said she will also work with the Sabah wildlife ministry on educating the public on the importance of conserving wildlife in the state. — Picture by Julia Chan

KOTA KINABALU, March 30 — Hollywood celebrity Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh, touched by wildlife conservation efforts in Sabah, will help promote the preservation of the state’s endangered species to the world.

The Ipoh-born actress said she said she will work with the Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Ministry on a documentary to highlight Sabah’s marine treasures including its turtles and coral reefs.

“I’ve been championing the orangutans but will work on other endangered wildlife. We are so blessed to have so much diversity and it is our duty to protect them. It is my duty to give them a voice,” she said.

Yeoh, who is the Malaysian Ambassador for Orangutan Conservation, said she witnessed first-hand the diversity and uniqueness of Sabah’s wildlife at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation centre and Kinabatangan river, and was impressed by the conservation work underway.

“There is always more to be done. The work here is Sabah is commendable. There are some concerted efforts being made to address the issue but the sad part is the problem is still there.

RM600 billion Forest City project behind mass fish death, say farmers

Source: The Malaysian Insider

Published on 15th March, 2015 by Mohd Farhan Darwis

Yusaini Majid, 35, says his boss will close down the fish farm because fish keep dying in the Tanjung Kupang waters. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Seth Akmal, March 15, 2015.

Silence now hangs over the dozen fish farms in the Tanjung Kupang waters in the Johor Strait, near a massive land-reclamation project for the RM600 billion Forest City development, which fishermen and farmers suspect contributed to the mass fish deaths in the area earlier this month.

Once a bustling hive of fishing activity, the area near Kampung Pendas, Gelang Patah, is now quiet, the stillness broken only by the sound of the waves lapping against the wooden stilts of the farms, barking of dogs and fish farm operators packing up their items.

Yusaini Majid, 35, has worked at one of the fish farms for more than three years, but he said the farm’s owner wanted to close it down as he was unable to recoup the losses.

“This will be our last month operating. The boss is upset, he doesn’t want to farm fish any more because they keep dying.
“I don’t know what will happen to the farm, the cost of repairs would go up to hundreds of thousands of ringgit,” Yusaini told The Malaysian Insider, adding that he was unsure what to do once the fish farm closed down.

Yusaini was luckier than other farmers. He had acted quickly and managed to save over half of his stock. But he said the remaining fish were of the cheaper kind, which could only fetch up to RM50 a kilogramme.

This is not the first time the area has been hit by mass fish deaths. In the past, locals have blamed Forest City’s land-reclamation works for the deaths, although the developer, Country Garden Pacific View (CGPV), has denied it.

19 green turtles overturned and left to die

Source: Free Malaysia Today

Published on 10th March, 2015

Foreign fishermen may have tried to smuggle the turtles out alive but aborted the plan due to the presence of enforcement personnel.

KOTA KINABALU: Poachers have cruelly killed 19 green turtles by turning them on their back and leaving them to die in the uninhabited Pulau Tiga after the buyers did not turn up.

The Star reported that wildlife investigators believed that poachers had caught the turtles and turned them on their back while waiting for buyers.

However, the buyers never came, leaving the turtles to suffer a slow, painful death.

Unlike baby turtles, large ones that have been turned on their back cannot get back on their feet. They can survive for about 10 days to two weeks before they die.

According to a source, the people who were supposed to pick up the turtles did not make it.

A live turtle can fetch more than US$2,000 (RM7,200) and its meat, sold for about US$300 (RM1,080) in markets in China and Vietnam.