Tag - Environment

Penampang: SM St Michael became the first school in Sabah - and probably in the country - to have the solar photovoltaics (PV) system installed on its roof to reduce the school's electricity consumption. Thanks to a worldwide project named "dena Solar Roofs Programme" that is coordinated by the Deutsche Energie-Agentur GmbH (dena) or German Energy Agency and co-financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi), the school became the programme's first recipient in Malaysia. The aim is to install the PV system on the roof of a Malaysian school and to teach the students about environment protection and renewable energies as well as encourage international partnerships. St Michael was chosen due to its successful environment-friendly projects as well as the school's positive spirit and enthusiasm in advocating renewable energy. Solarsysteme Sachsen GmbH completed the installation of the rooftop PV system this year in January. It was initiated in October last year in cooperation with the school. The PV technology fits well in Malaysian tropical weather where almost every roof is suitable for PV systems as long as it fulfils the static load requirement. Thomas Brandt, General Manager of Malaysia-German Chamber of Commerce, said the prospect is especially interesting for East Malaysia because of the remote areas where energy supply via the national grid is not possible or too expensive. "PV systems are seen as an innovative option by offering a cleaner, more sustainable solution to consumer's dependency on fossil fuels to generate electricity. "It is also a mature and secure technology which is independent from energy supplier and future rising technology costs," he said. The PV systems installed at SM St Michael consists of 24 panels, two inverters and a battery system distributed over 41 square metres rooftop of the school, which has 903 students. The solar system generates approximately 6,800kilowatt hours (kWh) of solar energy per year and helps to reduce the school's utility costs. The system also includes a back-up system whereby the energy stored in the battery can be used during power blackout and can provide energy 24 hours a day. In an effort to reach out and educate the local community of the benefits of the rooftop solar system, a display panel has been installed in the centre of the school to display the actual power in kW and the accumulated generated energy (in kWh) and CO2 savings over the entire period. The "dena Solar Roofs Programme" was launched in 2004 and is co-financed by the Germany Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. It aims to support solar energy companies to enter new markets. Gabriele Eichner of the German Energy Agency said ever since the dena solar roofs programme was launched, about 50 similar projects have been carried out in other parts of the world. "The main goal is to support the cooperation between German and Malaysian experts in the field of photovoltaic and also sharing of knowledge about the systems under the specific conditions in Malaysia," she said. Sustainable energy supply, she said, is increasingly becoming global importance to many societies in the world. Today, she said, there are more than 17 per cent of the final energy consumption is covered by renewable energies worldwide and provided employment to five million people. She said that in Germany alone, there are more than 380,000 people who produce, develop and sell solar plants, and thus create value. "Currently, photovoltaic is the 13th most important energy source worldwide," she said. Permanent Secretary, Datuk Hashim Paijan, officiated at the event on behalf of Minister of Industrial Development, Datuk Raymond Tan Shu Kiah. Source: Daily Express

 A SUCCESS: 40 bags of rubbish collected in 'Keep Mabul Clean' campaign organised by dive company

AS security forces continue  their operations to hunt down Sulu terrorists in Lahad Datu, about 50 tourists from several countries joined hands  with the local community to clean up Pulau Mabul  beach here yesterday. Organised and sponsored by Scuba Junkie, which won the Wild Asia award for Responsible Tourism 2012, it marked the dive company's 1,000th beach clean-up. The clean-up saw 40 bags of rubbish collected and brought back to the mainland to be disposed of by the Semporna District Council. Scuba Junkie has been running their "Keep Mabul Clean" campaign for the past four years with great success. Together with beach clean-ups every second day of the week, they had also set up and sponsored the only rubbish collection point on the island. Director Richard Owen said: "It's great to see so many people participating. The positive feedback we received from the locals is fantastic." The situation in Lahad Datu and the incidents in Simunul last week had not deterred tourists from visiting Mabul. Owen said Mabul Resort was fully booked the last two days, with 10 of its 12 dive boats filled with divers. Although rumours were being spread, Owen said tourists at the resort were confident with the level of security. "We are also in constant contact with the authorities who have been informing us daily that the area here and the islands are safe and secure." Louise Hayter from the United Kingdom, who took part in the clean-up, commended the dive company for giving back to the local community. "Mabul is a lovely island. I have had some of the best dives in my life here over the last few days. "I have felt safe throughout my stay here." Source : New Straits Times

KOTA MARUDU: The Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) will enhance not only the security, but also economic development of towns in northern Sabah. Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili said with Esscom's implementation, security would be strengthened, resulting in an increase in confidence and ease of doing business. "With security strengthened, towns such as Karakit in Pulau Banggi, Kudat, Pitas and here will experience strong growth fuelled by expansions in the agricultural sector, especially oil palm and rubber. "Small coastal farmers will have no fear to develop their land and plantation companies can expand their planted areas," he said at the swearing-in of Kota Marudu district councillors yesterday. Ongkili, who is also Kota Marudu member of parliament, said the expansion of agricultural activities would result in the towns, which provide farm supplies, getting more vibrant, adding that the tourism sector would also benefit. "This is a far-sighted security strategy by Barisan Nasional not only to ensure the security of Sabahans, but also facilitate the growth of the state economy. "This is unlike the opposition, which spends time belittling the efforts of the government and security forces, while doing nothing to improve the people's security." In addressing the councillors, Ongkili said the council must always be ready to face disasters like floods by following standard operating procedures. He said the district should always have a clean environment, as well as be free of illegal businesses, vice activities and illegal immigrants. "The main road at the town area here is often congested with vehicles, but this is a sign of growth. "Next year, we hope to implement plans to create dual lanes to ease traffic congestion during peak hours." Source : New Straits Times

KOTA KINABALU: A few parks in Sabah are already being managed with local communities living within them and maintaining their lifestyles. The establishment of Tun Mustapha Park will represent a major shift towards conservation and sustainable resource use. The proposed Tun Mustapha Park, located at Kudat-Banggi Priority Conservation Area (PCA), in the northern region of Sabah was proposed as a multiple-use park by the Sabah state government in 2003. After 10 years of conservation efforts, a symposium will be held today (March 20) to highlight how this marine protected area will be part of the evolution of resource management around the world. The proposed Tun Mustapha Park (TMP) encompasses around 50 islands including Banggi, the largest island in Malaysia, and boasts a high diversity of ethnic groups from the coastal communities of Bajau, Ubian, Suluk, Kagayan, Balabak and Bajau Laut to the inland communities of Rungus, Bonggi and Dusun among others. Including the communities on the coastal mainland, there are approximately 80,000 people living in and around the proposed park. The majority of these people rely in part on the park’s marine resources. There is a need for the park to be gazetted because of the area’s high biodiversity, concentration of coral reefs, mangroves and the richness of fisheries in the region. The proposed park’s objectives are to protect habitats and support livelihoods for artisanal and commercial fishers. Once fully gazetted, it will be the second largest marine protected area in South-East Asia. The concept for the park is to be a multiple use, managed area which includes areas for strict protection, tourism, artisanal fishing and commercial fishing among others. A multi-stakeholder group made up of government agencies led by Sabah Parks, Sabah Fisheries Department, Universiti Malaysia Sabah and the Lands and Surveys Department, NGOs including WWF-Malaysia and the local communities have been working to realise the gazetting of TMP. Under the National Coral Triangle Initiative led by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), TMP is recognised as an important area for the implementation of its objectives for the ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAFM), adopting protected areas as one of the EAFM implementation tools. This means that the health of the ecosystem as a key indicator is being integrated into the management of the marine protected area. This approach includes the development of maps of ecosystem features and values, identifying and developing stakeholder profiles, and conducting consultations with stakeholders to build a shared vision around the proposed management approach. Source: Borneo Post  

KINABATANGAN: Borneo Conservation Trust (BCT) has embarked on a 10-year programme with a resort here to prove that people are more likely to benefit from natural forest that are teeming with wildlife than without. BCT conservation and research head, Raymond Alfred said in a press statement yesterday that the 10-year programme is currently carried out on the 100 acres of forest land belonging to Myne Resort. “We will carry out three core activities during this duration and they are geared towards the conservation and management of the 100 acres of forest land belonging to the resort,” he said. The resort has, earlier this year, pledged not to clear the forest land and said that its intention was to maintain and protect the rainforest for wildlife corridor that would benefit wildlife such as the Bornean pygmy elephants, the orangutans and others. The activities that will be carried out during that duration shall be the establishment of the wild orangutan sighting and Bornean pygmy elephants’ observation platform. “We believe this move will encourage more people to come and visit the Lower Kinabatangan Mega Biodiversity Corridor which is within the Myne’s Forest corridor. Additionally, they can also learn what they can do to support conservation efforts in the area,” he said. BCT will also carry out a unique wildlife observation programme which will be opened to volunteers who were keen to take part in actual field recreation work. “This will encompass the enrichment and restoration programme for wildlife…it will become one of the activities that Myne Resort can offer to its visitors from both locally and abroad,” he said. BCT would also develop a long-term volunteer programme that encourages youth participation, he said. “We will also continuously promote the said land as an orangutan conservation area and elephant corridor that connects the wildlife to the bigger Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary,” he said. To date, the BCT and Myne Resort’s project aimed at preserving the forest had not received any funding from the government or any international donors to initiate this programme, and this programme was initiated by the private sector, he said. “We do get some donations from tourists and volunteers who are supportive of our programme,” he said. He added that the support and guidance from the Sabah Wildlife Department (SWD) and the Tourism, Culture and Environment were crucial for the success of the endeavour. “We also need the support of other relevant government agencies especially Sabah Forestry Department and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, particularly those involved in the REDD+ programme,” he said. Equally important, said Raymond, was the support from the European countries as BCT, which was a non-government organisation (NGO) and Myne Resort, a player in the private sector, had committed itself to secure and protect the forest which would help mitigate the climate change crisis. Raymond said that the total cost of the programme, that is protecting the rainforest was not yet known. “Since we have just initiated the project in January, this year, we are still in the process of estimating the cost of protecting the rainforest area per hectare. We hope we can come up with the estimation by the end of this year or by early 2014,” he said. Nevertheless, a recent awareness programme by a group of Japanese students has provided some preliminary insight that the tourism industry and diversified volunteer programme had the capacity to further support the conservation programme and also further secure and protect the rainforest, he said. He also said that it was still too early for them to determine whether the alternative income and trade-offs for the beneficiaries derived from the endeavour would be better than, say, converting the land for logging and oil palm. “However, we are optimistic that in the long term, Myne Resort will receive permanent gain from the protection of the 100 acres of rainforest.” He added that they hope to duplicate the programme to other forest areas that still has an abundant of wildlife. Meanwhile, Sabah Wildlife Department director, Datuk Dr Laurentius Ambu said that the implementation of the programme between BCT and Myne Resort had already benefitted the Bilit community at the Kinabatangan. “BCT and Myne Resort had recruited the local community from the village as part of their capacity building programme. The local communities have also been involved in tree planting activities which were part of the programme,”said Laurentius. Source: Borneo Post