Is MB Lying or Ignorant?

We know Penang sourced her water from Sg Muda. But do you know that there are many catchment areas - from Muda Dam to Baling and even Gunung Bintang (Sg Sedim). Look at the topo map here and understand the flow from different rivers to Sg Muda. After going through the map, tell me whether this MB is lying or pure ignorant!

Read the story below...

Observe the blue lines....the rivers flowing toward Sg Muda

Tuesday May 29, 2012

Kedah MB: Water catchment areas not affected by logging

JITRA: Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak on Tuesday defended the logging activities taking place in Baling forests saying water catchment areas were not affected.

He said the Kedah Forestry Department had made it a condition that the water catchment areas should not be affected in issuing logging concessions.

He told this to reporters after handing over land ownership titles to settlers of Felda Bukit Tangga here.

He was responding to allegations by Kedah Umno chief Datuk Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah that the logging activities impacted water catchment areas.

Ahmad Bashah had made the claims at a press conference on Sunday.

On Friday, some 300 Umno Youth and Puteri Umno members from the Baling Umno division had staged a peaceful demonsration to protest the PAS-led Kedah's government move to allow the logging activities, claiming that waterways there had become polluted because of it.

On this, Azizan said tests carried out by the Kedah Drainage and Irrigation showed the claims were not true. - Bernama

Coming Soon - New Kedah State Park?

Oct 10, 2009
Nature society lauds Kedah’s move to gazette forest
Star

The Kedah branch of Malaysian Nature Society welcomes the decision by the state government to gazette the Ulu Muda forest reserve area and set up a park there.

Its secretary Phang Fatt Khow said the association had always wanted the state to protect the area.

“We applaud the state government for making such a bold decision because we have asked the state many times to protect the Ulu Muda area,” he said.

Phang said this when commenting on Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak’s announcement that the state would set up three state parks, covering 64,995ha of land.

Azizan said the parks were in Ulu Muda (27,196ha), Bujang Valley (11,636ha) and Langkawi (26,163ha).

He was quoted as saying that the park in Ulu Muda would include the Pedu, Muda and Ahning Dams while the Bujang Valley park would include the Merbok River and Gunung Jerai.

He added that the park in Langkawi would encompass Pulau Tuba and part of the Langkawi main island.

Phang said the association had been fighting for the Ulu Muda area to be protected because it was the last remaining sanctuary for animals such as elephants, tapirs, Sumatran rhinoceros, sun bears and the seladang.

Logging in Perak

Logging (Tempoh) from June 08 till Dec 08. Entrance to logging

area at 11.3 km from Grik-Kulim Highway (N5deg 29.236' E101deg 03.886')

Logs and Gunung Kenderong at the background.

Elephant dung just a kilometer from the new highway.

There was so much news on logging in Kedah (read the news below). Penangites are worry too - "Penang fears Kedah logging could jeopardise water supply" (news attached below).

But are you aware that PERAK is also going on a logging spree? How come Penang is not worry that the logging in Perak will affect Penang's water supply too?

Look at the google map and you could see that the streams and rivers from the present logging sites (the area left of Gunung Kenderong and Gunung Kerunai) in Perak empty into Sg Kupang and joining Sg Muda.

The new highway from Kulim to Grik actually cut through pristine jungle. Wildlife are abundant. On one of my camping cum exploring trip, I saw elephants' dungs and foot prints of large animals like deers, wildboars, bears and heard an unconfirm wild cat (tiger?).

This area around the two mountains (which ironically an important limestone outcrops) is also rich in biodivisity. We have seen fireflies at night and rare hornbills eating bayas fruits in the jungle. A scientific expedition could only reveal more flora and fauna in that area.

If you check the map, with the new highway (still not shown in google map yet), the area has been disected into smaller area. And I wonder whether they can sustain the wild elephants and wildlife. It will come a time when conflict of elephants and human will be seen...and that will be very soon if nothing was done to stop the logging.

Are we going to wait till our water supply jeopardised before we take any action? Is our Pakatan Government really care a hoot about our environment? or are they just like Barisan Najis?


----------News on Logging in Kedah from Staronline------------

Monday June 23, 2008
Kedah told to be alert for loggers

ALOR STAR: The state government has been told to not deal with “environmental culprits” from Sarawak who eye logging tenders in catchments.

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) coordinator Mohd Nizam Mahshar claimed that logging companies in Sarawak had bad track records.

He said this in response to Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak’s announcement that the state would hold discussions with a logging company from Sarawak that knew how to carry out selective logging in catchments without causing adverse impact on the environment.

Mohd Nizam said environment groups would go all out to object to the heli-harvesting plan in the 122,000ha Ulu Muda forest reserve that housed the Ahning, Muda and Pedu dams.

“Allowing logging in the area would be a big mistake as it would have far reaching implication on food security, and water supply,” he said.

Azizan, however, has given a personal guarantee that the environment would not be affected as only the old and decaying trees would be removed.

He likened the process as “removing grey hairs.”

“We are merely rejuvenating the forest by removing old trees to make way for new ones,” he said after a ceramah at Muasasah Datul Ulum in Pokok Sena, held in memory of PAS leader Datuk Fadzil Noor who passed away six years ago.

In any case, he said the state would not proceed with the plan without approval from the relevant authorities, including the Department of Environment.

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Tuesday June 24, 2008
A folly to log in Kedah just to make ends meet


A COUPLE of years ago the nation was shocked with the image of Lojing in Kelantan; mighty trees and greens of thousands of years fell from the greed of men. After some finger-pointing the news trail turned cold, no one was to blame and no one was to take the responsibility.

Now the new PAS-led government, after winning another state, is reliving the past. Logging in Kedah is not a major industry.

The past state government once planned to log the Muda Reserve but the plan was scrapped over environmental concerns.

But now the same idea has re-emerged and this time by the new government.

It is true that money is needed by the state, not just Kedah, but every other state to ensure a well-run government which in turn would benefit the people. But to destroy something to achieve another is a folly.

HARITH JAMALUDIN @HH,

Sungai Petani.

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Sunday June 22, 2008
Kedah to use heli-harvesting
By SIRA HABIBU


ALOR STAR: The Kedah Government is going ahead with its plan to allow selective logging in the Ulu Muda catchment areas using the heli-harvesting technique.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azizan Abdul Razak, however, assured the public that the catchment areas would still be preserved because only selective logging to remove decaying trees would be allowed.

“We will be using the heli-harvesting technique to remove the decaying old trees that are more than 100 or 200 years old.

“That means we will only be removing a few trees every hectare,” he said.

He said Kedah had no other choice as it had to cope with rising expenditure.

“We are desperate to increase the revenue to make ends meet as the Federal Government is not keeping its promise to pay RM100mil annually in compensation for sparing the catchment areas,” he said.

Azizan said this in response to objections from various quarters against the state’s plan to carry out logging activities in catchments.

Azizan said the state need not carry out selective logging in reserved forests covering 122,000ha if the Federal Government fulfilled the promise made in 2003 to pay RM100mil a year as compensation for preserving the catchment areas.

The Federal Government had paid the money once when Datuk Seri Syed Razak Syed Zain was mentri besar, he said.

On calls by Sahabat Alam Malaysia for the Penang Government to pay compensation to Kedah for preserving catchments that are crucial to ensure continuous water supply to Kedah, Azizan said they would appreciate it if Penang contributed.

“But it is not our intention to disturb Penang and Perlis that are dependent on water sources from Kedah,” he said.

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Saturday June 21, 2008
Penang fears Kedah logging could jeopardise water supply
By ANDREA FILMER and SIRA HABIBU


GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Government wants Kedah to rethink its plan to allow logging in the Muda catchment area because it could jeopardise its water supply.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government was deeply concerned over the move as 80% of Penang raw water came from Sungai Muda.

“We believe that logging in the Muda dam catchment area will have an adverse impact on water resources and utilisation in Penang.

“At a time when our forests are dwindling, logging, especially in catchment areas, is not seen as sustainable development,” he told a press conference yesterday.

He added that the country should be focused on reducing logging, not expanding it.

“I understand that Kedah has been put in a difficult position following the Federal Government’s failure to deliver compensation. However, I feel that conducting RM16bil worth of logging is not a proportionate sentiment,” Lim added.

On Wednesday, Kedah Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak announced that the state would be calling for tenders for logging activities at the Pedu, Muda and Ahning dam catchment areas to cover high state expenditure following the petrol price hike earlier this month.

Azizan said Kedah had to resort to such a move because the Federal Government had failed to deliver annual compensations of RM100mil after the state called off heli-harvesting of timber in the catchment areas in 2003.

Lim said he had instructed Penang Water Supply Corporation General Manager Jaseni Maidinsa to write to Azizan. If necessary, Lim would see him directly.

Jaseni, who was present at the press conference, said Penangites might see the effects of the logging in the next five years if the plan went ahead.

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) coordinator Mohd Nizam Mahshar said Penang should pay for the conservation of water catchments since Kedah needed at least RM650mil annually to maintain the Ulu Muda forest reserve.

“As both states are now Pakatan Rakyat states, they should help each other out,” he said.

SAM president S. M. Mohd Idris said the Government should pay a premium to any state government that took measures to protect catchment areas and the biodiversity.

He said 65,000 farming families depended on the irrigation from Ulu Muda, adding that it would have an adverse impact on the current food crisis.

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'I want to make money from God's timber gift'

NST Online

2008/06/26
By : Tan Chew Chin

ALOR STAR: Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak yesterday made light of plans to log RM16 billion in timber logging in the Ulu Muda forest reserve, saying he was missing sleep due to calls from friends on the matter.

He said his friends wanted to know what the fuss was about and that he had told them former menteri besar Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim had once said that Perlis did not have to pay for water as it was a gift from God.

"I am now saying timber is also God's gift and I want to make money from it. What's wrong with that?" he said to laughter from reporters after chairing the weekly state exco meeting at the Padang Terap District Council office near here yesterday. Referring to Kedah Umno Youth chief Md Rawi Abdul Hamid's call for a referendum on the proposed logging of an area twice the size of Singapore, he said "maybe someone just learned the word referendum". He described the call as "unnecessary", adding that referendums were normally held to change the constitution or system of government.

"This is just chopping down a few trees and you want us to hold a referendum?" he asked. Md Rawi was among several people including Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat and Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng who had asked Azizan to reconsider the proposal.

Several non-governmental organisations, including Sahabat Alam Malaysia and the Malaysian Nature Society, had condemned Azizan's plan to log timber in the water basin.

Sahabat Alam Malaysia honorary secretary R. Meenakshi, who estimated about one million trees would be chopped down, had described Azizan's claim that the proposed logging would be environmentally friendly as "nonsense and untrue". Azizan said his logging plan was not new, but similar to what the former BN state government had proposed in 2002, which was rejected by the cabinet. "We are doing what the former state government was afraid to ask from the Federal Government."

State Secretary Datuk Wira Syed Unan Mashri Syed Abdullah said that the previous Federal Government had failed to honour the cabinet's agreement to pay the state government RM100 million for sparing the forest reserve.

"We have been helping the country preserve the area for clean water. If the Federal Government gives us compensation, we will preserve the forest reserve," he said.

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Lim says Kedah MB not properly advised

NST Online

2008/06/26
By : Amy Chew reporting from Jakarta

CHIEF Minister Lim Guan Eng yesterday accused the Kedah government of working with timber concessionaires from Sarawak close to the Barisan Nasional in water catchment areas in the Ulu Muda forest reserve.

He said Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak should reconsider the idea in view of the link to BN."We hope he will reconsider because he is teaming up with these timber concessions from Sarawak which are closely-linked to BN parties." He said it was ironic Azizan was doing so and that "perhaps he was not properly advised" on the matter.

"After winning power, to be working so closely with BN vested interests is something quite unexpected."

Lim said the DAP was opposed to the move as it would affect water resources in both Kedah and Penang.He was speaking to the New Straits Times in Jakarta after a presentation at the 2nd World Peace Forum yesterday.

The controversy began after Azizan urged the Federal Government to allocate RM100 million annually or face the possibility of logging in water catchment areas in the state.

He had said that the state government was losing millions in revenue because they could not log trees for timber.Azizan, who said that timber near the catchment areas was worth over RM16 billion, ran into criticism for suggesting that the Ulu Muda forest reserve be logged.

Among his fiercest critics was Lim who had said that logging in the area would lead to catastrophic effects, especially at the Muda Dam. Meanwhile, he told the forum that globalisation was a better model for world peace than geopolitics.

"Globalisation creates ideas, the ability to acquire knowledge. Geopolitics decides whether or not we go to war."

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Bar: Kedah can’t log trees near river reserve

Friday June 27, 2008 MYT 5:16:55 PM

Staronline

PETALING JAYA: The Kedah Government has no right to cut down trees near the Ulu Muda River Reserve as water catchment areas fall under the Protected Areas and Protected Places Act 1959, the Malaysian Bar Council said.

Environmental Law Sub-Committee chairman Roger Tan said that while all forest produce on state land were the property of the state government, most states had laws against polluting water catchment areas.

“The reason for this is because the management of water catchment areas will affect the quality and quantity of water,” he said in a statement.

He added that deforestation would cause irreversible ecological damage that would cause soil pollution especially near the Muda Dam.

“Deforestation hastens soil erosion which in turns affects water quality. This then results in higher cost of water treatment,” he said.

Tan added that trees were important for the protection of water catchment, carbon balance, evapo-transpiration, photosynthesis and production of wood.

“It is disappointing to learn that a state government is willing to sacrifice the environment all in the name of development,” he said.

Gerakan is also against Kedah's decision to cut down trees for profit.

“I had objected strongly against a similar move by the Kedah Government in 2002-2003,” party acting president and former Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said in a statement.

He added that he had approached then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and then Primary Industries Minister Tun Dr Lim Keng Yaik to seek their assistance.

“I had stressed on the importance of the water catchment area to Kedah, Penang and Perlis to the present and future generations,” Dr Koh said.

He said this led to Kedah, which was then governed by the Barisan Nasional, to relent and drop the logging proposal.

Dr Koh urged Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng to convince his PAS counterpart in Kedah to abandon the logging plan, adding that Lim should also get Parti Keadilan Rakyat de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to assist him.

Politics Hurting Environment

Sad. Sad day for Kedah, a northern state in Peninsular Malaysia. When politics of hate and revenge by the AMNO will be hurting our environment. These f**kers never have the interest of Malaysia. They are the real traitors to Malaysia. We should condemn them to hell. Read the story below:

A Federation of Independent Malay States in the making
Posted by Super Admin
Thursday, 19 June 2008
http://www.malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/8997/1/

Kedah approves logging activities
By EMBUN MAJID, The Star

The Kedah Government has approved logging activities at the Pedu, Muda and Ahning dam catchment areas, a move that is expected to generate about RM16 billion in revenue for the state. Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak said the move was necessary to cover the high expenditure incurred by the state following the petrol price increase.

He added that the state would call for tenders soon and award the logging contract to the highest bidder. “We will discuss the logging method to be used with the Forestry Department,” he told newsmen after chairing the state executive council meeting yesterday.

He added that the Federal Government had promised to pay an annual compensation of RM100 million in 2003 following the state’s decision to cancel its proposed heli-harvesting project to log timber in catchment areas. “However, until now the payment has not been made. We have also asked the Federal Government for financial assistance for the water supply to Penang and Perlis and for the rice we are producing for the country. Since the Government cannot assist us financially, we will carry on with the logging activities,” Azizan added.

*************************************************

This is what happens when the federal government squeezes the opposition-led states and denies it the funding it requires. The federal government seems to forget that the granting of funds to the states should not be tied to which political party is running those states. The granting of funds to the states is a clause in the Federation Agreement.

At one time, the Malay states were independent and were known as the Straits Settlements, the Federated Malay States, or the Unfederated Malay States. Then they all agreed to merge into the Federation of Malaya. In doing so the states agreed to relinquish certain rights like national defence, security and foreign policy while they retained certain rights like land matters, natural resources and religion. Each state would then be given an annual grant plus loans for development, calculated based on the size of its population.

These were the terms agreed in the Federation Agreement and which was the basis for all the states to merge under the Federation of Malaya. And any first-year law student can tell you that an agreement made on the basis of mutual consent can no doubt be changed with the signing of a supplementary agreement, but must also be based on mutual consent. One party can’t unilaterally change the terms of the agreement without the consent of the other party. In the event one party violates the terms of the agreement, then the aggrieved party can either give notice for the termination of the agreement or sue for specific performance, with or without damages (unless there is a specific clause in the agreement that stipulates what happens when there is a breach -- like going for international arbitration, etc.).

Therefore, in this spirit, the federal government has no choice but to give the states grants and loans for development. If the federal government fails to do so then, for all intents and purposes, the federal government has violated the terms of the Federation. And the states will therefore also have no choice but to fend for themselves the best way they can -- which will include cutting down all the trees to turn them into much-needed cash with which to pay for the cost of running the states and to finance development.

Oil and gas is a state resource. Under the terms of the Federation Agreement, oil and gas, which is a state resource, belongs to the states, 100% (just like water, timber, tin, iron, gold, coal, etc.). However, in 1974, the federal government nationalised oil and gas and then forced all the 13 states to sign an agreement with Petronas -- whereby the newly created national oil company will become the owner of all the oil in gas and the states would just enjoy a 5% ‘commission’. Later, the states were forced to sign a supplementary agreement stating that the 5% ‘commission’ would be officially and legally called ‘royalty’.

The states really had no choice in the matter. This was not mutually agreed. What the federal government did was to pass a law in Parliament called the Petroleum Development Act 1974. By law, the states had to relinquish all rights over oil and gas and the federal government, through Petronas, took what belonged to the states ‘by force’. That not being enough, the federal government even violated the Petroleum Development Act plus also the agreement that the states were forced to sign with Petronas. In 2000, the federal government cancelled the 5% royalty due to Terengganu and handed it over to Umno to manage. And they also changed the name ‘royalty’ to ‘goodwill money’ -- which does not appear anywhere in the Petroleum Development Act or the agreement the states were forced to sign with Petronas.

Yes, the federal government has, time and time again, violated the terms of the Federation Agreement. And they violated it again in 1974 by nationalising a state resource -- oil and gas. And they violated it yet again in 2000 by cancelling the 5% royalty in spite of the 5% being morally wrong in the first place (but made legally right through an Act of Parliament). And now, after the 8 March 2008 general election, the federal government is up to its tricks again by denying the opposition-led states the funds it is legally obligated to give the states.

Sure, the states can’t send the federal government a notice of breach of agreement with 30 days notice to terminate the federation or to sue the federal government for specific performance and possibly for damages as well. But it can do the next best thing. The states still have land, water, timber, tin, gold, iron, coal, and much more. The jungles bordering Kedah, Perak and Kelantan are rich in resources, much of it explored but untouched since the beginning of time. The states can open up these lands and exploit whatever they can find there, timber included. The states have no choice but to do this. But what a great loss to the world when after some time not a single tree is left standing in this country and Malaysia eventually turns into a hot desert and Malaysia’s contribution to global warming will turn this world into a mess.

What will happen when there are no longer any trees in the catchment areas? Well, there will no longer be any rain and the dams will dry up. Then water will cost more than petrol like in Saudi Arabia. And this will happen because Umno wants to punish the opposition-led states by denying it funds although, when these states joined the Federation of Malaya in 1957, it was agreed that the states would receive funding and the agreement did not say that funding will be given only on condition that Umno rules these states.

Sabah too has been expressing its unhappiness all these many years but the grumblings of the Sabahans have fallen on deaf ears. But Sabahans no longer want to take any shit just like how the Sultan of Terengganu decided he too will no longer take any shit and he made this very clear by rejecting Umno’s choice of Menteri Besar. Now, Umno is going to return the 5% oil royalty it stole from Terengganu since 2000. But Terengganu does not want just the 2008 royalty. They want the royalty stolen since 2000, which comes to about RM7 billion, or RM8 billion with this year’s included.

Okay, if Umno does not want the eight Members of Parliament and 28 State Assemblymen from Terengganu to leave Barisan Nasional and become ‘independents’, then the federal government has to hand over RM8 billion this year. If not, then Terengganu Darul Ehsan will become the Independent Sultanate of Terengganu. The ball is at Umno’s feet.

Sabah too is pressing for the federal government to not only honour the Federation Agreement but the 20-point Agreement as well. Under the 20-point Agreement, Sabah is not one of the states of Malaysia equivalent to Kedah, Kelantan, Penang, Perak or Selangor. Sabah is equivalent to Malaya.

This is what Wikipedia has to say about the matter:

The 20-point Agreement was written for the main purpose of safeguarding the interests, rights, and the autonomy of the people of Sabah upon entering the Federation of Malaysia. It was originally envisaged that Sabah will be one of the four entities in the Federation, the others being Malaya, Singapore, and Sarawak. However, as times passed, Sabah and Sarawak ended up being merely one of the 13 states in the Federation.

Many do not understand this very important fact. Sabah is not a state as such. Sabah is of the same status as Malaya. Sabah lawyers can freely practice in Kuala Lumpur but Kuala Lumpur lawyers need permission to practice in Sabah. Sabahans can freely travel to West Malaysia but West Malaysians can be denied entry into Sabah (once upon a time West Malaysians needed to show their international passport before they could enter Sabah).

Is this unfair and smacks of double standards? This was what was agreed when Sabah teamed up with Malaya, Sarawak and Singapore to form Malaysia. Whether it is fair or not is not the issue. The issue is: this was what was agreed and if it is not fair then why agree to it? You can’t agree to something, fair or unfair, just to entice a state to join the Federation and then, after it has joined, you scream about the terms being unfair and unilaterally change the terms against the wishes of the other party.

And this is what the federal government has been doing all this while. It unilaterally changes the terms of the agreement and forces the states to agree to these changes. If also forces the states to sign contracts that are one-sided and a breach of the Federation Agreement or the 20-point Agreement. But now the states are fighting back. Now the states will no longer take any shit. And this is what is happening in the Terengganu, Kedah and Sabah situations. The aggrieved parties are fighting back as they rightfully should. And Terengganu wants back its RM7 billion. Kedah is going to cut down all its trees. Sabah will go for a new government that can increase its 5% royalty to 20% (which should be 100% in the first place) plus a government that can honour the 20-point Agreement, which was the basis for it to team up with Malaya to form Malaysia.

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Friday June 20, 2008
Green groups oppose Kedah plan

Staronline

ALOR STAR: Environmental groups are against the Kedah government’s plan to allow logging at the Pedu, Muda and Ahning dam catchment areas, claiming it will be detrimental to the environment.
Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) Kedah branch chairman Phang Fatt Khow yesterday urged the Pakatan Rakyat state government to reconsider the move to protect water catchment areas as well the surrounding bio-diversity.
“We are against the state’s plan to allow logging because in the long run, it may jeopardise water supply for padi cultivation,” Phang said.
He however agreed that the state should receive compensation from the Federal Government if it had to sacrifice the logging contracts to protect the environment.
Consumers Association of Penang president S.M. Mohamed Idris also cautioned against allowing logging at catchment areas as it would cause problems such as water pollution, flooding or droughts.
Yesterday Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak said the state government would scrap its logging plan if the Federal Government paid the state RM100mil annually as promised.
“We have to carry out logging because we need the money to run the state and conduct development for the people. But if we can have other revenue, then we won’t need to do it,” he told newsmen after visiting SK Suka Menanti here.
Azizan had on Wednesday, announced that the state government had approved logging activities at the dam catchment areas which would contribute about RM16bil in revenue for the state.
He had said the move was necessary to cover the high expenditure incurred by the state following the petrol price increase.

Shall We TENDER for the logging concessions?

I read with concern that a mere acre of logging concession in Kedah only costs RM500 to RM1000 (US$150-US$300)! Well, I don't understand how the previous state government thinking juice work! Imagine a mature tree can easily fetch RM10000 (US$3500) (if a log costs RM3000 as mentioned in the report below) ....how? A rational thinking person will know that there could be some stupid lawmakers who can't even understand simple arithmetic.
Is there corruption?

Ok, now, if the present state government is willing to tender out the logging concessions at RM25K (US$8100) per acre....then WE as citizen of EARTH could bit for the tender so that the forest and jungle could be spared the chop!
At 2400 acres per year, it will costs 2400xUS$8100 = US$19.5 mil.
Any citizen of the earth or any group or perhaps everyone of us chip in to bit for the tender! And SAVE OUR FOREST!!

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Staronline
Friday May 2, 2008
Kedah to have open tender for logging

ALOR STAR: Kedah is opting for open tenders for logging concessions as negotiated tenders had caused the state to lose an annual revenue amounting to more than RM50mil.

Mentri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak said the state could earn RM10,000 per acre (RM25,000 per hectare) but only got between RM500 and RM1,000 per acre (RM1,250 and RM2,500 per hectare) through negotiated tenders.

“How can the rate be so much lower for negotiated tenders? The loggers can sell one log for RM3,000 but the state is given a mere RM500 per acre.

“Don’t tell me we only have one tree per acre?” he asked.

Azizan said Kedah should earn RM60mil from the 2,400 ha of area allotted for logging annually if it got RM25,000 per hectare.

“That is why the state executive council has decided to implement open tender system for logging concessions from next year,” he said.

It was reported yesterday that Kedah had closed its door on negotiated tenders for logging concessions and was opting for open tenders instead.