SHAH ALAM: The Selangor state government plans to create a 120-kilometre (km) long trail across the Central Forest Spine (CFS) from Hulu Selangor to Hulu Langat which is expected to become a new tourist attraction in the state.
Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said it was part of the state's plan to declare the Permanent Forest Reserves (HSK) as Selangor Royal Heritage Forest (HWDS), as a tourist location for nature-lovers who are into hiking and jungle-trekking activities.
"The road that has been arranged (planned) by the Selangor State Forestry Department (JPNS) for a distance of 120 km and if it materialses will become one of the tourist attractions (in Selangor).
"However, it is certain that we will control the number of tourists entering because it will have a direct impact on the quality of the forest. If we allow too many people to enter (the forest) then there will be less control of littering (pollution), care, conservation and preservation of the environment," he said after the HWDS Declaration Ceremony as well as the Sungai Chiling Scientific Expedition Mini Seminar of Hulu Selangor Forest Reserve, at a hotel here today (November 28).
Earlier, Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah consented to declare a forest area of 108,000 hectares as HWDS at the ceremony.
In the meantime, Amirudin added that the state government through JPNS will facilitate the registration and control of entry into the HSK area as an effort to raise awareness about the importance of forest protection.
"Now to enter the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) in Selayang, you can use the application (to register). Making it easier for visitors who want to go to the 'skywalk' (canopy walkway) and so on, just register through the application without queuing at the counter and it will be easy for FRIM to control the number of people entering there," he said.
In addition, he said JPNS is also collaborating with Research and Development (R&D) of Telekom Malaysia (TM) to develop software to monitor activities in the forest.
"They will develop a software to monitor the condition of the forest. So, some activities can be detected including the entry of the public, the movement of animals, fires and also various other occurences such as landslides based on sensors or reports given," he said.
Earlier, Amirudin in his speech at the ceremony said the state is now actively strengthening efforts to preserve and sustain forests and the environment in line with the First Selangor Plan (RS-1) to ensure that Selangor is a resilient state, its people are always protected and the environment preserved.
He said a high commitment has also been given in supporting agendas and policies at the national and international levels regarding the preservation of biodiversity and climate change issues.
"Among the efforts made is to implement a Moratorium Policy on Logging in HSK for 25 years since 2010; obtaining international recognition through forest management certification by complying with the Standard Criteria and Indicators (Malaysia and Indicators, MC&I) of Sustainable Forest Management (SFM); and recognition received as the seventh National Geopark in Malaysia and the first in Selangor from the National Geopark Committee on November 4 last year, which is known as the 'Gombak-Hulu Langat Geopark' (GHLGp)," he said.— Bernama
