KUALA LUMPUR: The Selangor government has decided to return the permanent forest reserve status to the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve (KLNFR).
The decision to re-gazette KLNFR was unanimously reached at today's weekly Selangor state executive council meeting.
Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said only 42.09ha out of the total 536.61ha of the area will remain degazetted to resolve land ownership issues that have been pending since 2006.
"These issues involved the Orang Asli of the Busut Baru village, who had been relocated from their settlements in 1994 to make way for the construction of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
"The state government will also consider retaining degazettement of another small portion of the area for the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) alignment considerations.
"However, the state government will stop the proposed development plan for the area and strike out its land ownership that was given to the related company.
"In pursuant to this, the Selangor government will begin the process of regazettement of the Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve," he said in a statement today.
Amirudin said the state government will also retain the status of another 581.13ha of permanent forest reserves in Sungai Panjang, Ampang Pechah and Broga Hill.
"We would like to emphasise that all due processes were taken to degazette KLNFR previously, and these were in accordance with the law.
"We will be writing a letter to the Selangor State Assembly Speaker to convene the Select Committee on Competency, Accountability and Transparency (Selcat) to reply to issues that were previously raised regarding this degazettement issue," he said.
It was reported on Aug 30 that the Selangor government had given its greenlight for the KLNFR to be degazetted and developed.