PUTRAJAYA: The National Landscape Department has been tasked to identify tree species suitable for roadside shade in urban areas.
Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming said the matter was discussed in the cabinet meeting earlier.
"Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim) has also instructed 100 trees to be planted to replace each one that is being cut down.
"The department encourages the local governments to send their staff for courses (in arboriculture) to become 'tree doctors'," he told reporters at the soft launch of the National Landscape Department.
This was following several incidents of uprooted trees in Kuala Lumpur, including at Jalan Sultan Ismail on May 7, which claimed the life of a 47-year-old motorist.
Nga said the department had issued comprehensive guidelines as well as organising workshops on tree maintenance.
Arborist Mohd Zailani Jamil said there was an urgent need to relook at tree management policy and address the lack of certified arborists in Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Landscape architecture lecturer Associate Prof Dr Suhardi Maulan from Universiti Putra Malaysia said sufficient budget must be set aside to ensure that the trees were well maintained.
He said those involved in planning and designing, as well as tree maintenance, should also be held accountable for their selection of trees as well as their methods of managing them.