Tag - Environment

KOTA KINABALU: A focused study is currently on-going to look objectively at the biomass opportunities for Sabah to help the State realise the environmental, economic, and social benefits from biomass-based industries and maximize its impact through concrete action plans and milestones for year 2020 and beyond. A multi-stakeholder Steering Committee led by the Ministry of Industrial Development (MID) Sabah convened its first meeting yesterday. The Steering Committee targets completion of Sabah Biomass Industrial Development Plan within five months. This effort is in collaboration with Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM), an agency under the Prime Minister’s Department that developed and tasked to execute Malaysia’s National Biomass Strategy (NBS). An international consulting and engineering company with global presence across the energy and industrial sectors that delivers strategic advisory and engineering services, underpinned by strong project implementation capability and expertise have been appointed to facilitate and provide objective assessment on the biomass opportunity for the State. The study is part of AIM’s initiative under NBS to accelerate Malaysia’s opportunity to create RM30 billion in additional revenue, 60,000 new jobs and more importantly 12% abatement in CO2 emissions by capitalizing on a balanced portfolio of downstream opportunities ranging from bioenergy to biochemical laid out in NBS. Sabah could potentially contribute half of the said target if it internalises the NBS strategy and devise and follow through on these milestone-based localized action plans to drive its biomass industry into higher value-added downstream opportunities by carefully planning the utilization of its biomass resources. Chaired by Datuk Haji Hashim Paijian, the Permanent Secretary of MID, the Steering Committee comprises key State Government stakeholders like State Economic Planning Unit (UPEN), Ministry of Infrastructural Development, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment, Ministry of Finance (Sabah), Sabah Forestry Department, Department of Industrial & Research (DIR) and POIC Sabah Sdn Bhd. The Steering Committee will govern the direction and objective of the study and will continue to ensure the execution at the working level beyond the course of the study. Governed by the Steering Committee, the key objectives of the study would be to identify volume of mobilisable biomass in the State taking into account all existing uses and industries, assess maturity of various downstream opportunities and infrastructure gaps, develop detailed business strategies and formulate a Sabah roadmap and action plan to drive the biomass industry. Since its launch in 2011, the National Biomass Strategy has identified one of the major opportunities in the biomass sector in Malaysia lies with Sabah, especially for palm oil biomass due its density of mills and total planted area making it one of the focal states when it comes to biomass based investments. The biomass proposition for the State is further strengthen by the foresight of state-owned entities like POIC Sabah Sdn Bhd, the developer of the Lahad Datu Palm Oil Industrial Cluster to acknowledge the potential of this new industry and actively work to promote and attract investments in downstream biomass activities like the production of second generation biofuels and biochemical. There is a growing global demand for sustainable feedstock and while challenges exist to mobilise these biomass resources in the State, the potential prize is tremendous if we are able to overcome these hindrances, as it would help create long-term sustainable industries. As laid out in the National Biomass Strategy, Sabah has the potential to be a hub for the development of second-generation biofuel and biochemical. POIC Sabah has been working closely with Ministry of Plantation and Commodities, Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA), Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM) and Malaysian Biotech Corporation (BTC) over the years to bring the strategy into reality. Today, with the setup of a State Government driven Steering Committee and commitment to incorporate this study and action plan as part of the State Development Plan, it shows the endorsement for this new industry and seriousness of the local government to make a push to realise its full potential in the biomass sector, thus strengthening the execution of the National Biomass Strategy. Source: Borneo Post

Kota Kinabalu: Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) must play a role to create leaders who have greater awareness on the need to manage the State's natural resources sustainably. According to the university's Vice Chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Mohd Harun Abdullah, Sabah is rich with natural resources and is also one of the places on earth that is high in biodiversity. He explained that most industries, agriculture and tourism are very much dependent on the natural resources. Harun said this in his speech delivered by Faculty of Business, Economics and Accountancy Dean Associate Professor Dr Rashid Mail when launching the Sustainability Leadership Course at the university's Chancellery Building, here. He said the university has been conducting various sustainability programmes since its establishment 20 years ago and in 2013, they have transformed into a sustainable university with EcoCampus as their branding. "We are the first Malaysian university that implemented a campus wide strategic plan for sustainability…and the first Malaysian university to be accepted as a member of the largest Sustainable University Global Think Tank, the International Sustainable Campus Network (ISCN). "We became a member last year in 2013 and were formally welcomed at Harvard University in June 2014. "We are also the first university to be a member of Environmental Association of Universities and Colleges (EAUC) in 2014," he said, adding that the university was also ranked 244th in the UI GreenMetric World University Ranking, which is a ranking system for sustainable university. Speaking of the programme, sustainability leadership, he explained it is not just about being the industry leader in sustainability efforts but is about leading in a sustainable way. "Hopefully, the course can create more leadership traits that can transform the ideas of sustainability into reality," he said. The course, which was organised by the university's EcoCampus Management Centre, Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation together with JICA-SDBEC (Japan International Co-operation Agency-Sustainable Development for Biodiversity and Ecosystem) Sabah, was attended by more than 80 university staff. Source: Daily Express

KUDAT: The State Government's announcement that it will consider gazetting Tun Mustapha Park (TMP) at Kudat waters this year is well-received by World Wide Fund for Nature-Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia) Sabah Office. In November last year, Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman said as much when tabling the State 2015 Budget at the State Assembly sitting. The proposed TMP covers a total area of 1,092,420 hectares, stretching to the Malaysia-Philippine maritime border involving some 50 islands off Kudat, Kota Marudu and Pitas. Apart from being a critical habitat for corals, mangrove swamps and seaweed, the proposed park area is rich in natural resources that provide livelihood and food sources for more than 80,000 people within and beyond the Coral Triangle boundary. To be managed by Sabah Parks, the park will also serve as a corridor for a safe passage for endangered marine species such as whales, dolphins and dugong as well as turtles. Deputy Head of WWF-Malaysia Marine Progamme, Robecca Jumin said the gazettement of TMP has taken a long journey with support from various partners since the Government's approval in March 2006. "We are approaching the gazettement target by 2015. Since 2006, WWF-Malaysia has been working in the area to build the capacity of stakeholders to be part of the planning and development process of TMP, as well as for its future implementation," she said. Towards this end, Robecca said, one strategy was to form community groups and organisations that will enable the community to work with each other and play a significant role in the effective management of TMP. Such groups include the Maliangin Islands Community Association (MICA), Banggi Youth Club (BYC), Berungus Community and Kudat Turtle Conservation Society (KTCS). "They can be leaders in marine conservation in TMP. It is clear that for TMP to be effective and sustainable, continued stakeholder support, and ocal and international partnership are important," she added. WWF-Malaysia's Community-based Resource Management & Conservation of Marine Biodiversity in the Proposed Tun Mustapha Park (TMP) is one of the 17 GEF-SGP (Global Environment Facility-Small Grants Programme) projects in Sabah. The Small Grants Programme (SGP) is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and executed by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). At the recent National GEF-SGP Seminar in Petaling Jaya, Robecca received a grant of USD148,000 for WWF-Malaysia's project in Kudat, Banggi and Kota Marudu. In her presentation on MPA (Marine Protected Areas) & People : Building Stakeholder Support for the Proposed Tun Mustapha Park (TMP), she said WWF-Malaysia is promoting conservation efforts with the local community in Kudat in support of the Government's initiative to gazette the proposed TMP. "Once gazetted, the proposed TMP will be the largest marine park in Malaysia. It will be a unique paradigm changing park as it will be the first multiple use park, with zoning system and collaborative management as its management approach. "This brings forward the important role of stakeholders in the effective management of TMP once gazetted, especially the local communities within and around the proposed park," she said. With available SGP funding, Robecca said the project will focus on three key pilot sites to demonstrate the benefits of Marine Protected Areas (MPA) and ultimately build support for TMP and the capacity of the communities to co-manage their natural resources. The sites are at Tigabu Island (72km off Kudat), Kg Batu Siri on Balambangan Island and Kg Taritipan in Kota Marudu. Residents on Tigabu Island farm sea cucumbers as their main source of income, which is supplemented by fishing activity in the proposed TMP area. Trained in Marine Science and Aquatic Biodiversity Conservation and Monitoring, Robecca has more than 13 years of working experience with WWF-Malaysia, promoting marine conservation, including the establishment of the Tri-National Sulu Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME) Programme from 2001 to 2004, and the establishment and gazettement of TMP since 2006. Since September 2014, she has led the WWF-Malaysia Marine Programme, working to implement marine conservation strategies on sustainable fisheries through ecosystem management, sustainable seafood, species protection and sustainable seascape through integrated ocean management. Source: Daily Express

SANDAKAN: The Kinabatangan Corridor of Life Tourism Operators Association (KiTA) remains committed to implement the vision and mission since the association's inception seven years ago. President, Alexander Yee said last year the association faced various kind of situations and he hoped this year would bring more success. KiTA would also continue to do its part in the conservation of the Kinabatangan wildlife corridor, he said at the association's annual dinner and media appreciation night here Saturday. Also on hand was Kinabatangan Wildlife Officer, Jimli Perjin. Source: Daily Express