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Three Class II Forest Reserves (Commercial) with a total size of 176,780 hectares have been reclassified as Forests (Constitution of Forest Reserves and Amendment) (Amendment) Enactment 2012 Bill was passed unanimously at the State Legislative Assembly. Tabling the Bill, Asst. Minister to the Chief Minister Datuk Radin Malleh said the amendment was also made to de-gazette 4,560.20 hectares of forest reserves by way of land swap with State land. A the same time, new forest reserves with a total size of 4,642.68 hectares to replace the de-gazetted forest reserves will be created.
He said the commercial forest reserves converted into protected forest reserves converted into protected forest reserves was the Gunung Rara Class II Forest Reserve that would be named Mount Magdalena Forest Reserve Class I (Protection) and Ulu Segama Forest Reserve would be reclassified as Ulu Segama Forest Reserves Class I (Protection) (127,798 hectare) and Danum Valley Forest Reserve Class I (Protection) (Extension) (92 hectare).
The reclassification exercise, among others, was to create the wildlife corridor linking Lembah Danum, Maliau Forest Reserve and Imbak Canyon Forest Reserve. It was also to make the area into a research and education environment as about 400 active researches were currently being conducted in Danum Valley Forest Reserves and Ulu Segama Forest Reserve.
Radin said the de-gazettement exercise involves seven areas among them in Semporna comprising Tanjong Nagas Forest Reserve Class 1 (Protection) (708 hectare) and Mount Pock Forest Reserve Class I (Protection) (1,388 hectare) that would be alienated for Communal Title.
Through the amendment, he said the state permanent forest reserve would be increased form 3,609,167.07 hectares to 3,609,249.55. He assured that the State Government would only alienate land form forest reserves once the area to be swapped has been identified.
At the same time, forest reserves proposed for de-gazettement were those problematic ones and no longer productive, which would be looked into by the State Government in the future according to priority.
Source : Daily Express
Photo: junglemikey.blogspot
