ACTIONS speak louder than words. Three recent events have left this observer feeling more optimistic about the environment in this country.
Firstly, the 2021 Budget. The finance minister last week listed a number of environment-friendly measures, including RM50 million to remove rubbish and waste from rivers; RM40 million to strengthen enforcement and monitoring; RM10 million for island waste management projects in Johor and Terengganu; RM400 million for the preservation of natural resources (the Tahap initiative); RM20 million to hire 500 former soldiers and police, as well as Orang Asli, to patrol forests; and a promise to build with the private sector an urban transformation centre in Lembah Pantai.
Secondly, Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional assemblymen in the Selangor Legislative Assembly last week stood as one to vote to preserve forest reserves in Selangor, after the speaker called for a voice vote to consider that "any move to degazette forest reserves should only be done in consultation with residents, stakeholders and professionals".
A final decision will be made by the state executive council chaired by the menteri besar. The assembly had earlier been told the state government intended to degazette 2,400 hectares of forest reserve, with 150ha set aside for the Orang Asli community.
The Kuala Langat North Forest Reserve is home to many endangered animals like sun bears and flying squirrels.
Previously, Environment and Water Minister Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man had urged the Selangor government to preserve the area to ensure environmental sustainability.
Third, (though not exactly recent), is the environment-friendly construction of the Rawang Bypass, with a 2.7km elevated section standing 58.2m above ground, Malaysia's tallest pillar structure.
The structure's curvy design is aimed at protecting and preserving the environmentally sensitive area below. The 108,000ha state park is rich in flora and fauna, including the world's 400 remaining Giam Kanching (Hopea subalata) trees.
The original design and construction methods would have caused the extensive felling of trees, cutting and filling of slopes, and disrupted the free flow of wildlife.
Vegetation loss would also cause an increase in surface run-off and future flash floods downstream.
After extensive study and discussion, it was decided that a viaduct solution would be used instead to minimise environmental disturbance.
The solution offered minimal, local cutting on slopes at two high points, necessary to reduce viaduct gradient, but wildlife can move freely beneath the entirety of the structure.
On another note, last week saw the establishment of nine All Party Special Select Committees of Parliament.
They are on Basic Freedoms and Rights under the Constitution; Finance and Economy; Security; Agencies under the Prime Minister's Department; Agriculture and Domestic Trade; Infrastructure Development; Education; Health, Science and Innovation; and Women and Children Affairs and Social Development. While I agree with those who want to break down silos, it is disappointing not to see a special select committee dedicated to the environment.
The committee could consider how, for example, our Covid-19 socio-economic recovery stimulus packages ensure that we avoid destroying wildlife habitats and triggering the release of more deadly, economically crippling zoonotic diseases on humanity.
It might also consider how Malaysia can reassert herself in science diplomacy — how we could be the leading environmental voice of the region when we host the Asean Biodiversity Conference next year.
Or it could give consideration to a membership in the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for Nature and People, an intergovernmental group championing a global deal to halt the accelerating loss of species, and to protect vital ecosystems that are the source of our economic security.
The HAC will use a pair of UN meetings next year, one on climate change and one on biodiversity, to push for ambitious, science-driven global action to safeguard nature and humanity's future. It is also not too late for us to sign up for the Leaders' Pledge for Nature launched during the World Summit on Biodiversity this September.
There are 78 countries from all regions that have committed to reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. These leaders are sending a united signal to step up global ambition and encourage others to match their collective ambition for nature, climate and people with the scale of the crisis at hand.
So, for environmentally conscious observers, this month brought encouraging signs of enlightenment dampened by disappointment. We are gradually, surely making progress.
The writer is ambassador and science adviser to the Campaign for Nature, former UN official and a senior fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia