News : Feasibility Study for Selangor Park

I'm going to monitor the development of this so called Selangor Park reported in the NST. First, the country is fond of studies. Implementation??? You don't have to look very far but every time you passed by Templer's Park area, you can see hills flattened for development from the time you're entering the area from Selayang , until you reach Rawang. I'm not against development but is it necessary to be done there where that area is famous for the Kanching waterfall, the Templer's Park and the Commonwealth Park to name a few.



The road is currently on a widening process which I thought is to ease the current congestion during peak hours and also school holidays where people would swarm the area for a respite from the city. But with new housing development in the area, the road widening project will not have that much improvement over the current congestion, except to accommodate the future traffic. Templer's Park area might not be in the proposed study but I'm just quoting it as an example. Sometimes I see that people don't care and appreciate for what they have now until they have lost them.



Excerpts ...



The feasibility study to establish the proposed Selangor State Park, which will become one of the world’s leading forested areas, will be launched on Oct 19.



The study, to be launched by Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo in Hulu Kelang, will cover some 113,000ha of forest. The area, along the eastern side of Selangor, forms the longest stretch of forest in the State and has been designated as an environmental sensitive area (ESA). The RM1.2 million study will be funded by the British High Commission. It will be ready in July.



The Selangor Town and Rural Planning Department, in association with Treat Every Environment Special Sdn Bhd (TrEES), will undertake the study. The department's assistant director, Yunos Kashib, said the State Park was a step in the right direction to preserve ESAs and safeguard Selangor's future water supply. "All the major rivers, five of the largest dams and 23 of 30 water abstraction points in the State, which provide 98 per cent of water supply, are in the study area," he said. The proposed park would also help curb poaching in the area.



Yunos said the study would encompass various aspects including legal and legislative provisions to enable the park to be gazetted for effective management. The park, to be developed in phases, is expected to take five years to complete.The development concept reflects the State Government's commitment to achieving balanced social and economic development, with emphasis on the preservation of natural environment.



"The park area would also serve as a unique natural heritage for the younger generation." The study area, he said, was also special in terms of geology because it comprised the Quartz Ridge of the Klang Gates, which is a unique natural monument.



According to the Malaysian Civil Service Link website, the URL for Selangor Town and Rural Planning Department is http://jpbd.selangor.gov.my/ but trying to go there will give me a "Cannot find server" message. Is this another of cobwebbed, no maintenance government website?



Also found related links below:



1. Malaysian Nature Society

2. Geological tourism locations