THE National Biological Diversity Roundtable institution was newly established and its first meeting was chaired by Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Dr Xavier Jayakumar, in Putrajaya, recently.
Five academicians were invited as resource experts together with 15 other members, representing various sectors of stakeholders, particularly the private sector and non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The Roundtable group was created to advise the minister on the direction and strategy of implementing the National Biodiversity Policy (2016 to 2025).
Policy documents discussed based on implementation perspectives have strong principles and goals and, if fully implemented, would ensure that the country can manage its natural resources wisely, conserve its biological diversity and heritage well and develop highly competitive industries based on biodiversity resources. It turns out, this policy cannot be fully implemented yet as some institutional constraints and political will still needs to be addressed.
The Biodiversity Policy emphasises on five implementation goals:
FIRST, empower and attract all stakeholders to conserve biodiversity.
SECOND, ensure that the country can reduce pressure imposed upon biodiversity either directly or indirectly.
THIRD, the country needs to conserve all the main ecosystems, species and genetic diversity from any threat.
FOURTH, ensure the benefits of using biodiversity resources are shared equally; and,
FIFTH, we need to improve the capabilities, knowledge and skills of all stakeholders to conserve biodiversity.
The most fundamental issue to ensure that all these goals are accomplished is whether all parties have identified the biodiversity resources that need to be conserved, and who should be the champion to lead this noble cause?
Although many initiatives have been undertaken to conserve biodiversity, from the institutional perspective, the most effective approach is through the National Forestry Act 1984 and its use through enactments in the states of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak.
Also to note is the concept of Permanent Forest Reserve (HSK) and the division of forests into diverse usage, either as a production forest or conservation forest. Based on the Act, various initiatives of conservation have been implemented, including national park, state park, recreational forest and wildlife sanctuary.
The HSK concept was introduced by the colonialists to manage the forests and to use forest products as a commodity source. The idea of heritage, preservation and conservation of biological diversity is secondary, and only receives the attention of the government when it comes to pressure from within and outside the country.
In the New Malaysia era, the country needs to look into existing approaches and introduce new perspectives in managing biodiversity. Preservation and conservation of natural heritage should be prioritised, followed by forests and green areas as land use for environmental services.
At the same time, HSK as a source of a commodity should be viewed from a broader perspective, covering basic needs, cost-effectiveness, country’s land use policy and environmental development.
As an environmentalist specialising in Geological Conservation and Sustainability Science, the conservation of biological diversity cannot be seen from the perspective of “biodiversity” alone, and is less associated with other important associated components, such as natural landscape of scenic beauty, natural heritage of national or state value and a network of natural and cultural heritage.
Take the example of natural landscape, such as mountains, ridges and hills, valleys, rivers, waterfalls, plains and coastlines; landscapes are the manifestations of internal (tectonic) and external processes (weathering and erosion) that have occurred since millions of years ago.
The shape, uniqueness and beauty of the landscape is a geological diversity heritage that has become the building blocks of biological diversity. In actual fact, ecosystems and natural habitats are manifestations of the availability of geological landscapes. Attention should be given to the thoughts of natural heritage as part of the Malaysian cultural heritage. It is an important legacy that we have inherited and need to pass down to future generations.
The effort to identify, characterise and put a value from the perspective of world-class heritage, national, state and district-level should be implemented immediately. Also, some proactive measures need to be taken by gazetting all heritage of high value through the Heritage Act at the state or district level. The acknowledgement of a heritage site can vary depending on its values and roles. There is much we can learn from developed countries about this matter.
The country has to move forward by paying attention to the vision of “integrated heritage”, that is a network of cultural and natural heritage.
Under normal circumstances, the natural and cultural heritage are closely connected with no clear separation. Our limited thinking and capabilities
have led to our heritage being divided into various sectors and managed in isolation from one another. However, heritage is the belief and commitment from the perspective of values and this sense of belonging cuts across the boundaries of knowledge.
Generally, all heritage of high value has a combination of biological diversity, geological diversity, archaeology, history and the development of the nation’s civilisation. This is the form of diversity that needs to be inherited and celebrated.
The Biological Diversity Roundtable also looks at the proposed framework of the Biodiversity Strategy in the 12th Malaysia Plan. In the context of natural resources management, attention will be given to three focus groups, namely land resources, marine resources and mineral resources. At the same time, the environment has a separate focus on environmental management and water resources management.
Conservation of physical landscapes, ecosystems and habitats has a close relationship with the management of the environment and water resources. Separate discussions and actions are unlikely to address environmental conservation and services issues, particularly biodiversity.
An umbrella act and integrated actions are required to ensure that environmental development and biodiversity conservation are carried out effectively. Three basic components of environmental development, such as conservation of natural heritage, environmental services and sustainable use of natural resources should be managed in an integrated manner.
The writer is chairman of National Heritage Council, principal fellow of the Institute for Environment and Development, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and a member of the Roundtable on Biodiversity