Mangrove trees to be replanted at Tanjung Piai

Royal support: VIPs, including Che Puan Khaleeda (left), looking on as volunteers plant mangrove trees at the Tanjung Piai National Park in Pontian.

PONTIAN: Some 5,000 new mangrove trees will be replanted in the Tanjung Piai National Park to help preserve the wetlands at the southernmost tip of mainland Asia.

The new plants were contributed by state-owned investment arm Johor Corporation (JCorp) and the Raja Zarith Sofiah Wildlife Defenders Challenge 2016 programme.

JCorp chief executive officer Datuk Kamaruzzaman Abu Kassim said they realised the importance of mangroves in the ecosystem and their role in curbing coastal erosion and buffering the impact of strong waves and tsunami.

Besides that, he said the wetlands was also home to many wildlife species and a source of income for the local folk.

“The replanting of the mangrove trees will be done in stages, carried out by the national park at locations deemed suitable,” he said in his speech during the ceremony.

The handing-over ceremony was witnessed by Tunku Mahkota Johor’s consort Che Puan Khaleeda Bustamam who was the official representative of Johor Permaisuri Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris here yesterday.

Khaleeda planted a mangrove tree as a symbolic gesture during the event, which also saw 100 volunteers replanting trees.