KUALA LUMPUR: Environmental protection and climate change legislation must focus on conservation of natural resources rather than merely focusing on corrective measures.
Alliance for a Safe Community chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said a Climate Change Bill must be introduced, which must also include prevention of environmental damage by development activities.
Commenting on the New Straits Times' front page story on how low-lying areas in Penang could be underwater within a decade due to the effects of climate change, Lee acknowledged that Malaysia already vulnerable to extreme climate events leading to floods, surface runoffs and associated landslides, land subsidence and even droughts.
He said the adverse impacts of man-made disasters from unchecked development and lack of monitoring by local authorities become more severe with extreme climatic conditions.
"Encroachment, development and activities in environmentally sensitive areas such as in forest watersheds, peat areas, hills and slopes, he added, have been rampant and adverse impacts of these developments are exacerbated during the events of climate change.
"As we witness year in and year out of the news of landslide subsidence and the fatalities count, it becomes an annual déjà vu, of save and rescue, blames and defensiveness.
"To add insult to injury hundreds of millions of rakyat's money have been awarded to contractors to conduct remedial works, all of which could have been prevented if proper control and precautionary approaches on development have been done by local authorities and developers, with less focus on short-term gains," he told the New Sraits Times.
Lee said that in the past, recommendations had included policy directions, intentions and ideas to minimise the impacts of climate change the form of various Acts, guidelines and policy documents
"Five–year Development Plans and various Environmental Acts and Policy Documents in theory would have guided the Government on the types, scale and locations of development allowed.
"It is pertinent that environmental protection legislation focus on conservation of natural resources and environmentally sensitive areas rather than merely focusing on corrective measures," he said.
He said Malaysia's strategies for actions to protect the environment and reduce the impact of climate change are complemented by multilateral commitments through agreements, resolutions, declarations and international conventions signed by Malaysia, significantly the 1992 Convention on Climate Change and Biodiversity.
Malaysia's National Policy on Environment was formulated in 2002, consequently The National Policy on Climate Change (2012) had aimed to mainstreaming climate change through the wise management of resources and enhanced environmental conservation.
He said the policy which contains 43 key actions also aims to strengthen institutional and implementation capacity which is the key to success of any policy or legislation.
"Thus we can see that policies, guidelines and conversations on environmental protection and climate change in Malaysia are aplenty. But when mishaps and tragedies happen again and again we wonder whether these fall into the deaf ears of policy makers, local authorities and implementors.
"There have been significant numbers of breaches of environmental law, however the proportion of prosecutions or other enforcement action have been minimal and only comes to the fore when there is public outcry."
He said the major problem within the legal framework is in its sectoral approach which leaves certain grey areas unregulated due to the overlap between existing government agencies tasked to manage environmental well-being.
"The environmental protection and climate change legislation must focus on conservation of natural resources rather than merely focusing on corrective measures. This law must include prevention of environmental damage by development activities.
"What is urgently needed is for the governent to introduce a Climate Change Bill and review all existing legislations to protect our environment," he said.