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by Intan Shafinaz
Not just for the sake of tree planting, SHAFINAZ SUHAIMI urges us to start thinking about meaningful efforts in protecting our urban green spaces for the people.
Tree planting is one of the many ways to get people outdoors and involved in small but meaningful conservation efforts. With this in mind, a tree party was held on June 21 at Kota Damansara Community Forest (KDCF) in conjunction with World Environment Day. The party themed "Plant-a-Tree for the Planet" aimed to introduce people to their green spaces, to encourage them to use them and thereby contribute to the upkeep and protection of the community forest as a functional urban green lung and watershed area. The tree party was organized by Wild Asia, AMP Radio Networks (AMP) and Friends of Kota Damansara (FOKD).
About 495 visitors turned up that Sunday and a total of 310 tree pledges were made towards Wild Asia's Plant-a-Tree campaign by corporate organizations as well as individuals.
Messages of eco-conscious lifestyles and the need to protect our urban green lungs are not new, but they are strong messages about our environment that need to be conveyed effectively if they are to be translated into action. When words are expressed through song and video, they are delivered more powerfully and profoundly to the people.
Hani Azlan, the publicist for AMP reaffirmed, "AMP's 8 radio stations are able to reach out to about 11 million listeners and is the best medium to communicate to the public about conservation programmes in a fun way,"
Not just about planting trees.
AMP's celebrity radio announcers from ERA, MY FM, hitz.fm, MIX fm, LiteFM, SINAR, XFM and THR Raaga roughed it out and took part in the planting of 310 native jungle trees consisting of 5 different species - Pittosporum ferrugineum (Splay berry tree), Pouteria obovata (Menasi), Dipterocarpus chartaceous (Keruing Kertas), Buchanania arborescens (Little Gooseberry Tree) and Aquilaria malaccensis (Karas Plains).
But it was not just about planting trees. Other activities included guided nature walks, photo competitions, nature hunts for children and their families to discover the forest's flora and fauna and kayaking in the community forest's artificial lake.
Supporting efforts that make KDCF special.
VIPs present during the Tree Party's opening ceremony, namely Kota Damansara's assemblyman Yang Berhormat Dr. Nasir Hashim and Subang Jaya's MP, Yang Berhormat Mr Sivarasa Rasiah, together with tree donors, signed a banner to signify support in the building of a 2km trail called the Scout's Trail.
This collaborative effort by Trails Association of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor (TRAKS), FOKD and Bukit Bintang Scouting District to establish the network of trails aims to provide the means for residents and visitors to easily enjoy the natural beauty and serenity of the forest reserve.
In the afternoon, 48 speed-loving cyclists zoomed through the newly built Scout's Trail to clock the fastest time. According to Dr Reza Azmi, Executive Director and founder of Wild Asia, the trails "have been carefully designed and passionately laboured over in ensuring that they were built in an ecologically-sensitive manner."
With over 20 years of trail-building experience, Pat Brunsdon of TRAKS had said that more often than not, trails were built too steep with no regard for the natural contours of the terrain and proper run-off of rain water. This results in the degradation of the trails, and the forest as a whole, due to uncontrolled soil erosion.
A total of 20km in trails of varying difficulties are being planned for KDCF. With a diverse network of multi-purpose trails and scenic routes, hopefully more people would bond with the forest and therefore appreciate and fight for the protection of one of the few remaining green patches left.
There are also plans to create a boardwalk around KDCF's signature lake for the physically disabled. Corporate sponsorship received for this, as well as for the regular maintenance of the trails, will also be used for a myriad of other causes.
What the future holds...
KDCF was part of the Sungai Buloh Forest Reserve totalling 3,900 acres, the latter being gazetted in 1898 and is reputedly the oldest forest reserve in Peninsula Malaysia. However, recently it has come under threat from development. Last December, the Draft of the Petaling Jaya Local Plan 2020 took away more green areas for residential development.
FOKD, the Malaysian Nature Society, with aid from the United Nations Development Program (through the Small Grants Program) are trying to protect the area from further development.
Earlier this year in April, during an event to celebrate Earth Day, Selangor State Mentri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim announced that the state government would gazette KDCF as a forest reserve in three months' time.
In order for KDCF to remain biologically viable and vibrant, any proposed development must be presented to the public, supported by a legal framework and scientific findings.
"The public is much more enlightened about conservation efforts nowadays. Now we have broadcasters, different organisations and associations involved in one programme - the impact is more extensive," said Hani Azlan.
As Zainal Abidin's famous song 'Hijau' resonated throughout the forest park during the Tree Party, we see that we are not alone in our crusade to make our urban natural spaces green and healthy.
The Malaysian Environment Week and the International Day of Climate Action will be held in October (the latter has nearly 1,500 events planned in over 70 countries). Wild Asia plans to reach out to its friends once again to garner all the help it can get to save the world - one small green space at a time.
References.
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Original URL: http://www.wildasia.org/main.cfm/library/protectgreenspaces
Published: 18 August 2009
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