No rolling hills here: A video-grab from the two-minute video showing a hill slope near Habu Lake that has been carved up.
PETALING JAYA: Hill slopes being striped bare of their pristine forests and carved up like a layered-cake in Habu.
Clear lakes in Blue Valley, Bertam Valley and Tanah Rata turning to the colour of teh tarik from mud and soil runoff from land that was cleared and left bare.
These images are part of a two-minute video that was uploaded on social media by local environmental group Regional Environmental Awareness Cameron Highlands (Reach).
Its president Dilip Martin Anthony Roak said besides polluting rivers and lakes, the soil runoff from the land clearing has flowed into nearby farms.
“Nearby existing farms have been flooded by earth displaced from these projects while a long overdue silt trap is still being built,” he said.
Dilip said insufficient drainage has caused waterlogging as those clearing the land have not started hydroseeding, a technique that is used to prevent soil erosion.
He added that residents fear that an eco-tourism project in Tringkap could pose a danger to them as it takes place on precarious slopes near their homes.
“Early action is imperative to prevent potential loss of life and environmental disasters.
“The ecosystem is endangered and wildlife is put at risk by landslides, floods and the direct dumping of sediment into reservoirs.
“Uncontrolled silt overflow has resulted from a lack of enforcement near Habu Lake, further exacerbating environmental degradation,” Dilip said.
He also claimed that complaints about these projects have been channelled to the local, state and federal authorities and Reach is still awaiting their feedback.
Cameron Highlands residents such as Roy Margaret are also worried about the impact of these projects.
“The clearings in Lembah Bertam and Tringkap are alarmingly blatant,” Margaret, 36, said.
“Such devastation threatens lives, incites floods, damages homes and cripples both the economy and tourism, compromising the highlands’ pristine environment.
“There’s a glaring lack of proper regulation or local laws to control development,” he said.
Another resident Khairil Anwar said he had raised concerns about these projects to the local authorities.
“I’m deeply worried about the potential environmental disaster,” said Khairil, who has lived in the area for the past 12 years.
In response, Tanah Rata assemblyman Ho Chi Yang said the land clearing projects in Lembah Bertam and Tringkap were approved by the state government and the relevant authorities.
