While the fate of the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve (KLNFR) is hanging by a thread, those opposed to its proposed degazettement can take heart in the knowledge that the process of withdrawing the protected status of a forest reserve “can take years” to complete.

As Selangor Forestry Department (JPNS) director Ahmad Fadzil Abdul Majid puts it, it is not that easy to degazette a permanent forest reserve (HSK)...