Kelantan MB denies floods worsened by logging
Kelantan Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob has dismissed claims that uncontrolled logging resulted in the extreme floods that hit the state.
Kelantan Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob has dismissed claims that uncontrolled logging resulted in the extreme floods that hit the state.
The state administration has come under fire for the catastrophe from various parties, including Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who yesterday said the widespread clearing of land on hill slopes in the Kuala Krai and Gua Musang districts could have attributed to the floods.
"Rampant opening of land - especially for logging - has an effect on the environment because there is no natural retention to stop the water from flowing directly to the river swiftly," Najib was quoted as saying by Bernama .
Ahmad stressed that his administration has been ensuring that logging is done according to regulations and has asked critics to discuss it first with the state government before making assumptions.
"When I heard several parties, including Najib, yesterday describing the floods in Kelantan as a result of uncontrolled logging, they should first refer it to the state government," he said in a statement today.
Ahmad ( right ) also said "other factors, like excessive rainfall as reported by the Meteorological Department, should be taken into account" before pointing fingers at logging.
He said the state government has been in compliance with the laws related to logging, including adhering to the yearly allocation of 5,960 hectares approved by the National Land Council.
Among others, Ahmad clarified that the state government has also obtained the required international certification for forest management.
"The forest management in Kelantan has been given the Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) and Malaysian Criteria and Indicators for Forest Management (MC&I) certification from independent international bodies," he added.
He emphasised that even areas allocated for the Timber Latex Clone (TLC) plantations needed to obtain approval by submitting environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports.
State to take more stringent measures
However, Ahmad clarified that if there was any uncontrolled logging done in the state, it might have been carried out by some irresponsible parties, against whom the state government would take more stringent measures.
Other than Najib, Kelantan ruler Sultan Muhammad V on Sunday also hit out on the environmental impact of the floods, calling on the people to be more environment-friendly and correct their mistakes.
A report by mongabay.com, via a global forest map in November 2013, also pointed to uncontrolled logging as contributing to the worsening floods in the state.
The report showed Kelantan as a victim of deforestation for natural recovery, reforestation and the establishment of industrial timber and oil palm plantations, especially in the Kuala Krai and Gua Musang areas, which are now badly hit by the floods.
The report also stated that between the years 2000 and 2012, Malaysia had the world's highest rate of forest loss.
Separately, Bernama reported that more than 1,000 villagers near Kampung Rantau Panjang, in Kelantan were stranded after hundreds of logs littered some 100 metres of their exit road, caused the villagers to be trapped in their respective villages.
The villagers also faced a shortage of food and had to ration their food for three days before food supplies were brought to them in a Royal Malaysian Air Force helicopter.
The news agency added that numerous logs floating in the rivers also had an effect on the flooding in Kelantan , for the logs got stuck under the bridges and blocked the water from flowing - thus spilling over to the surrounding areas and causing major floods.
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