PART II

Suggestion for Solution and its challenges

- State what others have done with regards to the issue (Malaysia and overseas)

All species are interconnected. They depend on one another. Forest provide homes for
animals. Animal eat plants. The plants need healthy soil to grow. Fungi help decompose
organisms to fertilize the soil. Bees and other insects carry pollen from one plant to another that
enables them to reproduce. When biodiversity reduces, these connections weaken and might
break, harming all the species in the ecosystem. It is also proven that ecosystems with a variety
of biodiversity are generally stronger and have more resistant towards disasters.

There are multiple issues threatening our planet’s biodiversity. This ranges from climate
change, deforestation and habitat loss, overexploitation, invasive species and pollution.
Throughout the years, the Earth’s ecosystem has been drastically downgraded due to the
decisions made by the irresponsible humans. One of the major factor for the loss of biodiversity
is that natural habitats are being destroyed. Lands are cleared to plant crops or build houses and
factories. As the habitats shrink in size, fewer individuals can live there.

Seen as a major ongoing issue, people all over the world are working hard to maintain the
planet’s diversity. New acts and enforcements are being implemented in order to create
awareness on the importance of biodiversity. Take United States as an example, they introduced
the Endangered Species Act that protects about 2000 organisms that are in danger of becoming
extinct. The most familiar types of endangered species are the animals and plants. However,
fungus, such as the white ferula mushroom, which is a delicacy as well as helping in decomposing
organic compound such as plants, can also be threatened with extinction. Therefore,
organizations are working hard to create a sustainable mushroom population to satisfy the
consumers together with the local ecosystem.

Even though implementation from the government pertaining sustainability of the

environment in our country might not suffice if put relative to the United States, there are still
measures taken with accordance such as “KURSUS PENANAMAN CENDAWAN TIRAM KELABU”
conducted by local schools with certification from Malaysian Agricultural Research and
Development Institute (MARDI). However, due to the fact that the advert is only available online,
majority of the courses held did not have many participants. It seems that because the majority
of the targeted audiences were from the outskirts, they simply did not have the internet as a
commodity.

In addition to that, thousands of wilderness areas are set up to conserve plants, animals
and ecosystems. With the set up, they can control and maintain of what is left. This can’t be done
alone. Local, national and international organizations are cooperating to preserve the
biodiversity regions threatened by development or natural disasters. For example, UNESCO’S
World Heritage Site recognizes areas that are of global importance and do their best to protect
it. The National Park in the U.S. state of Montana, protects its biodiversity within the park by
restricting extractive activities, such as mining and drillings.

National parks in Malaysia are also something that Malaysians could be proud of. Taman
Negara National Park straddles 4,343km² of lowland and hilly rainforest over three states
(Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu) at the center of northern Peninsular Malaysia, with its own
mountain range that features the second highest summit of the country - Gunung Tahan
(2,187m). The problem lies however, even though that these areas need protecting it seemed
like it is not an issue needed to be considered by the general public. Certain type of forest go-ers
and locals who simply enjoys a picnic day at the stream with the children usually opt to leave the
remnants of their foods and waste, thus creating pollution. Even though this could be considered
as small scaled but if the problem persists and multiplies, it could be very disastrous.

In addition to that, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), have long been established by
Australia to preserve their sea life. Only 4% of the world’s oceans are being protected and
preserved, and the vast majority of it is poorly managed, or not looked after at all. MPA ranges
from marine reserves, marine parks, ocean sanctuaries and no-take zones, to name a few. In the
marine protected area around Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, no-fishing zones have helped fishes
thrive in populations. They also invested in efforts to limit pollution and restore the coral reef
ecosystems in the area. This is mainly done to improve the ecosystems and make it healthier,
thus increasing their biodiversity. In Malaysia, a total of 136 marine protected areas were
established Sabah, Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia.

Malaysia acquired their largest MPA yet only May last year. The Tun Mustapha park (TMP)
occupies 1m hectares (2.47m acres) of seascape off the northern tip of Sabah province in Borneo,
a region containing the second largest concentration of coral reefs in Malaysia as well as other
important habitats like mangroves, sea grass beds and productive fishing grounds. The question
resided is why has this not been implemented years before. It was said that the data confirmed
the urgent need for a sustainable management approach to preserve existing biodiversity and to
allow depleted fish stocks and damaged coral to recover. Areas with minimal damage can recover
in as little as three to five years (Extracted from The Coral Triangle; Marine Life. online news). It’s
taken nearly 13 years of consultation, strategic planning and negotiation to get the new Tun
Mustapha MPA officially gazetted, thanks to its sheer size and the complexity of developing an
action plan. This endeavor was created with the presence of many brilliant Malaysian marine
researchers and scientist. But maybe due to insufficient funds the project could not proceed as
fast as it was potentially predicted.

For Malaysia, the creation of Protected Areas (PAs), is one of the most effective measures
available to conserve biodiversity. However, it is important to know that it is not meant to be the
only solution to the decreasing biodiversity. They must be part of our country’s strategy for
sustainable management and wise use of natural resources, and must be planned accordingly.
This being said, efforts are restricted by the sector-based legislation and administrative setup.
Malaysia could definitely increase the extent of its Protected Areas, by assimilating and
coordinating sites that are already set aside for long-term conservation by various bodies in the
Federal, State and Local levels. This way, the Protected Areas system can be increased almost
three times as many to an estimated 16.5% of Malaysia by investing efforts in an increase inter-
agency collaboration within line agencies of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
This is exceptionally impressive as it does not require gazette of new areas.

One of the most powerful tool implemented in Malaysia is the Local Agenda 21, which is
based on Agenda 21 of the Earth Summit. The aim of this initiative is to involve communities to
work towards sustainable development at a local level. While Malaysia has yet to implement a
National Agenda 21, the pilot Local Agenda 21 are undergoing in areas of Petaling Jaya, Krian,
Miri and Kuantan. They are focused on the development of sustainable involving consultations
with local communities.

In conclusion for the brief explanation of the sustainable act around the world and the
challenges faced in our own country, it can be simply put that preserving our environment is a
cause needed to be highlighted more in order for not just the governmental action but also as a
citizen role. These citizens need to be reminded that the wealth of our natural commodity is not
something that we can perish lifelessly but it is a loan by our future generations.
REFERENCES

1. Petronzio, M. (2015). 5 major threats to biodiversity, and how we can help to curb them.
Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2015/05/23/biodiversity-threats/#XGcK5A7ASZqB
2. Ruthledge, K., McDaniel, M., Boudreau, D., Ramroop, T., Teng, S., & et al. (2011).
National Geographic Society - Biodiversity. Retrieved from
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/biodiversity/
3. GreenFacts - Biodiversity and Human Well-being. Retrieved from
https://www.greenfacts.org/en/biodiversity/l-3/3-extinction-endangered-
species.htm#0p0
4. https://www.theguardian.com/world/blog/2016/may/30/malaysia-just-established-a-
one-million-hectare-marine-park
5. http://www.mohe.gov.my/portalpsh/?job_listing=politeknik-nilai-politeknik-nilai-366-
kursus-penanaman-cendawan-tiram-kelabu
6.