Enforcement will help tackle effects of climate change, says Sabah minister
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s highlands are getting warmer due to climate change, said Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun.
He said Ranau district, which is among the coolest areas with Kundasang and Mount Kinabalu just minutes away, had never gone above 30°C.
“But now it is 33°C and this is very worrying,” he said at the launch of the Climate Change and Community Development seminar here yesterday.
Masidi, who was representing Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman at the event, said it would worsen if nothing was done to address the issue.
He said lack of enforcement of the many environment-related regulations and initiatives was behind the failure to tackle these issues.
“Sabah has passed numerous Bills and regulations on ways to go green and to re-use energy but enforcement is lacking and that is why we are still talking about the same thing over and over again, although Sabah is the best in terms of conservation efforts,” he said.
Masidi cited an example where the palm oil mills in Sabah could generate biomass energy for their daily operations instead of depending on Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd.
“But we still don’t see them doing it,” he said, adding that blaming Third World countries, as well as suggesting regulations and giving lectures on how to tackle the problem, would not resolve the issue.
“This is because those contributing to carbon emission and pollution are actually developed countries like China and the United States,” he said.
He said climate change was a global issue, so the major world economies should act and do their part instead of “just paying lip service” or lecturing other countries.
“At least China is doing its part and has invested billions of dollars to look into the problem, but what about America?” he asked.
Source: The Star Online
