KLUANG: In an effort to address the rising human-elephant conflicts, the Johor Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) will establish food banks for the mammals near forest borders and identified hotspot areas.
The initiative aims to attract the elephants and slow their movement towards the villagers' settlements.
State Perhilitan director Aminuddin Jamin said satellite collars will also be fitted on the elephants to monitor their movements.
The collars will serve as an early warning system through Geofence technology, providing real-time alerts when elephants approach human habitation.
Aversive Geofencing Devices (AGDs) are designed to emit audible warning signals followed by electric shocks when animals reach virtual fences with the intent that animals will learn to turn away at audio warnings and thereby avoid receiving shocks.
Aminuddin added that the department is currently focused on relocating elephants that had strayed from their herds.
"Kahang is a known entry route for elephant herds, particularly those identified by the Kluang District Wildlife Task Force committee members as the state national park and Jemaluang in Mersing, herds," Aminuddin said.
"Perhilitan regularly engaged with the villagers living within forest borders, with the latest conducted on July 30.
"In these sessions, we covered topics such as property and crop damage assistance, safety, and human-wildlife conflict," he added.
On the recent elephant attack in Kahang, Aminuddin said the elephants were likely drawn to areas cleared for replanting oil palm trees.
He said that in the case of the elephant attack in a rubber plantation in Kahang yesterday, it is believed that the elephant herd left their habitat and were attracted to the areas where oil palm trunks were felled and raked for replanting.
There was an oil palm plantation next to the rubber plantation, where a 75-year-old Indonesian woman was trampled to death by the elephants while tapping rubber.
Asked on claims of deforestation activities in Kluang, Kota Tinggi, and Mersing, which are known elephant routes, Aminuddin said that logging is outside Perhilitan's jurisdiction and that concerns over the matter were directed to the relevant agencies.
It was reported that some 1,800 Kampung Sri Lukut in Kahang villagers are living in fear following the elephant herd attack that resulted in the death of a rubber tapper.