CORRIDOR OF LIFE FOR SABAH'S ENDANGERED WILDLIFE

By Emin Madi

KOTA KINABALU, Malaysia, Aug 2 (Bernama) -- The protected wildlife in East
Malaysia state of Sabah is set to see better chances of survival, thanks to the
`corridor of life' introduced by the Sabah state government.

The corridor of life is not only aimed at creating more forest for the wild
animals to move about but also to complement the state government's goal of
ensuring that 55 per cent of Sabah’s total area has green cover.

State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Masidi Manjun said the programme
would involve rehabilitation of the riparian reserve to create a passage for the
wild animals to move about.

“Many people, especially owners of oil palm estates, plant crop right up to the
river bank, thus blocking the passage for the wild animals,” he told Bernama.

Riparian forest is a forested area adjacent to a body of water such as a river,
stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary or canal that allows fragmented forest to
be connected.

CORRIDOR OF LIFE

“We will be rehabilitating this area (riparian reserve) and we have given
alternatives to all land owners to stop farming on riparian reserve because
when they farm right at the river's edge, wild animals, especially elephants
are unable to cross the river," he said.

The corridor of life is currently the focus in the Kinabatangan district, in the
interiors of Sabah, which will involve the acquisition of a vast area to create
the riparian reserve.

“We are buying up the land little by little and as far as possible we try to
encourage Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to raise fund themselves because
we want the ownership to be shared by everyone.

Masidi noted that the implementation of the programme would be done in
collaboration with the state Wildlife Department and the Land and Survey
Department, the two department with enforcement powers.

EXTINCTION

“Enforcement means if for any reason a farmer or plantation company
encroaches into the riparian reserve, they have actually committed an
offence under the Land Ordinance.

“So that enforcement will be done by the Land and Survey Department," he said.

The whole idea of the corridor of life is to allow wild animals to move from one
place to another to search for food and also to give them the opportunity to
propagate.

“Animals are increasingly losing their habitat and are being pushed further into
the jungle and worse still, the opening up of land leads to the fragmentation of
forests.

“Therefore, it becomes a problem for the animals to move from one place to
another to look for food and when they encroach into plantations they become the
target of planters and poachers,” he said adding that sun bear is one of the
most endangered species in the state.

FOREST RESERVE

Masidi pointed out that the Malua Forest Station with an area of 144,320
hectares (328,000 acres) is one of the state’s most significant conservation
programme dedicated for the wild animals.

“We also have the Danum Valley and the Wild Animal Sanctuary at Sepilok covering
5,000-6,000 hectares.

“About 50 per cent of the forest in Sabah is already protected and we are
rehabilitating another two per cent of logged area to turn them into protected
areas,” he said.

The government’s long term objective is to make sure 55 per cent of the state
remains covered with jungle. In order to do that the state government will
increase the number of forest reserve.

In fact, the State Assembly’s sitting last April approved another 10,000
hectares of forest reserve and that is the surest way of saving the wild
animals.

“The other one, we have also introduced planting limits preventing people from
planting right on the river bank. Many people know that but plantation owners
plant up to the river bank, thus blocking the passage for the animals," he said.

“So if people ask what have we done to save Sabah’s endangered
species, we have provided them the natural habitat so that they can multiply without
the fear of being hunted or threatened.

“We want the next generation to have the opportunity see the sight
of these animals in their natural habitat and not in history books or in some animal
books. I think we need to leave a good legacy for our future generations,” he said.

PROTECTED SPECIES

According to the Sabah’s Wildlife Department, the endangered species are mostly
found in the Tabin Wildlife Forest in Lahad Datu and Ulu Segama, about 400km
from the state capital. Others wander in various part of the state.

Its Director Laurentius N. Ambu said the deer is the protected species most in
danger of being hunted for its meat, skin or horn.

Other protected species like the elephants, Sumatran rhinoceros,
Orang Utan and monkeys, including proboscis, are killed mostly because they encroach
into farmland.

Sabah is divided into four major wildlife habitat types, they are coastal and
mangrove forest, dipterocarp forest, heath limestone forest and montane forest.

Under the State’s Wildlife and Conservation Enactment 1997, wild sanctuaries are
the strongest conservation category for fauna, flora and genetic resources and
habitat.
-- BERNAMA




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