Programme to plant mangrove trees along coastline to continue, says Takiyuddin

PUTRAJAYA: The programme to plant mangrove trees and other suitable species along the country's coastlines, which increases mangrove forest protection while promoting conservation activities and raising public awareness, would be continued, says Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan.

In a message in conjunction with World Wetlands Day, which is celebrated annually on Feb 2, the Energy and Natural Resources Minister said the ministry would be installing coastal blocks and eco-friendly raft piles to reduce coastal erosion at the Tanjung Piai Ramsar Site in Johor.

The ministry will also support research and wetlands development efforts through the provision of funds under the National Conservation Trust Fund for Natural Resources (NCTF) in which the focus of funding is to manage, monitor and protect areas of biodiversity interest and environmentally sensitive areas.

Takiyuddin said the ministry welcomed any nomination of areas with the potential to be nominated as important biodiversity sites of international interest by state governments such as Kuala Gula-Matang in Perak and Teluk Air Tawar-Kuala Muda in Penang.

"The ministry will also continue to support all efforts towards protecting and conserving wetlands to ensure sustainability of the country's biodiversity," Takiyuddin said in a statement Wednesday (Feb 2).

World Wetlands Day is celebrated to raise awareness of the importance of protecting and conserving wetlands and to commemorate the date of the establishment of the Ramsar Convention (Feb 2, 1975). Malaysia joined the convention on March 10, 1995.

Wetlands include peatlands, mangrove swamps, rivers, lakes and coastal areas that are habitats for a variety of species of flora and fauna, especially migratory birds.

Takiyuddin said there were seven areas declared as Ramsar Sites in Malaysia - Tasek Bera, Pahang; Tanjung Piai, Pulau Kukup and Sungai Pulai in Johor; Kuching Wetlands National Park, Sarawak; and Lower Kinabatangan-Segama Wetlands and Kota Kinabalu Wetlands, Sabah.

"These sites are protected through gazetting by the state governments, whether under the laws for forestry, state parks, permanent forest reserves or wetland protected areas,” he added. - Bernama