Photo: 123rf
OVER the years, the tabling of the national budget in Parliament has become an annual affair that has Malaysians glued to their screens for the latest updates to find out what they will be getting – or not getting.
For some environmentalists and conservationists, this is what they are hoping nature will get in 2025 when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announces the Budget at the Dewan Rakyat on Oct 18, 2024.
Meenakshi RamanSahabat Alam Malaysia president Meenakshi Raman
1. Tax exemption for environmental NGOs: Currently, such NGOs are not tax exempt despite the valuable work they do. The government should provide incentives to these groups by exempting them from taxes. Many have to raise money on their own for the nonprofit activities they do. Tax exemption will value their work and boost environmental activities further for the benefit of the nation and the planet.
2. Significant increase in the amount allocated for the Ecological Fiscal Transfer (EFT) for biodiversity conservation: Budget 2024 saw an allocation of RM200mil for EFT for biodiversity conservation (RM50mil up from the original RM150mil).
The EFT needs to be raised much more significantly, and it should be used not only for biodiversity conservation but also for forest protection and conservation. This is critical if we are to protect water catchment forests to enable water security, and prevent soil erosion and floods. States will be less tempted to convert their forests and biodiversity with increased resources for the provision of these ecosystem services.
The “Pact for the Future” adopted on Sept 22, 2024, at the United Nations General Assembly has reaffirmed the need for halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030. To do this, much more significant financial transfers must be provided to the states. RM200mil does not go far enough at all to secure the incentives needed for states to do what is needed.
3. Increase financing for adaptation to, and loss and damage caused by, climate change: While Malaysia is currently preparing its National Adaptation Plan – which will take some time to be ready – the government can already begin to provide more resources for ecosystem-based adaptation measures that can strengthen resilience to climate change.
This can include enhanced protection of highlands and hill slopes from erosion caused by intense rainfall; mangrove projects to strengthen coastlines and improve livelihoods of fisherfolk; creation of more sponge-like spaces in cities to absorb and mitigate flood problems; tree- planting programmes and the creation of open spaces to mitigate the impact of higher temperatures in urban spaces.
4. Significantly increase resources for ecosystem- based approaches to flood mitigation and not just focus on smart tunnels and other infrastructure: At COP 28, the Dubai climate change conference in 2023, governments agreed to put in place multihazard warning systems by 2027. We have to enhance efforts for such systems to be in place in response to adaptation and loss and damage.
5. Provide more social protection: Farmers and local communities affected by climate-related impacts such as fires, droughts, and floods need better support.
6. No to increasing incentives for carbon capture and storage projects: In Budget 2024, the government announced that stakeholder agencies were reviewing and formulating tax incentives for carbon capture storage and hydrogen sulphide projects; the incentives will be finalised by the end of this year. (Hydrogen sulphide projects look into ways to break down the gas, a product of the petrochemical industry, into less harmful components.)
Rather than providing incentives for these projects, which are unproven and expensive, the government should channel incentives into increasing renewable energy use as well as for energy efficiency and conservation.
7. Plastics: The government should introduce a tax on plastic production, manufacture, sale, use, and disposal as an initial step towards reducing its production, use, and disposal. It should also impose and enforce a ban on problematic and unnecessary single-use plastic products and packaging.
Dr Mark Rayan DarmarajWildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Malaysia Programme country director Dr Mark Rayan Darmaraj
1. Harnessing and harmonising forest protection initiatives: Explore new funding mechanisms and potential financial sources such as the carbon market, biodiversity impact bonds, nature-based solutions which include biodiversity and carbon credits, and biodiversity sukuk (Islamic bonds), to name a few, to diversify and increase funding options to protect wildlife habitats.
I hope to see the harmonising and optimising of some of the existing initiatives that the government already has or is planning to have, for the benefit of biodiversity protection and climate change adaptation and mitigation.
The establishment of the EFT as a mechanism to reward states to preserve their forests is a good start to address the issue of habitat loss, although the quantum of compensation needs to be increased dramatically to provide sufficient incentive for this to be done effectively. In addition, how states use EFT funds needs to be better governed and streamlined so that the highest priority is ensuring existing natural forests are not converted to other uses or degraded.
Other forest protection plans such as the existing federal document called the Central Forest Spine Master Plan for Ecological Linkages – this identifies many important linkages necessary for wildlife protection – would require substantial state-level political backing and significant financial outlay to mitigate against planned development or to rehabilitate/restore.
Here, it would be useful for funds to be allocated towards establishing connectivity, which may include existing forest patches, secondary forests, and plantation areas or concessions. This effort can be linked to forest carbon offsets by corporates or other financial mechanisms to set aside and rehabilitate/restore plantations or degraded land to a state that is conducive enough to be utilised by wildlife to move between forest patches.
Funds could be allocated to a particular ministry/agency/think tank to spearhead the harnessing and streamlining of all these initiatives and upcoming financial mechanisms to better protect existing intact forests, rehabilitate degraded areas, and secure important wildlife corridors.
2. Long-term funding for community rangers to patrol terrestrial and marine areas: It is high time we recognise that the Orang Asli/Asal are our greatest allies in the protection of wild spaces, and that these environmental stewards need to be embedded within a system that will enable them to have a steady income.
Since 2020, the Malaysian government has put aside allocations to hire indigenous community members as well as veteran Armed Forces personnel under the Community Ranger Programme to patrol forests in Malaysia. In 2024, an allocation to hire 2,000 individuals (1,500 for Peninsular Malaysia and 500 for Sabah and Sarawak) under this programme was given, which is an increase from previous years.
While this is good, this programme still depends on annual budget allocations. Long-term sustainable funding for this programme reduces the risk of uncertainty in maintaining the high patrolling efforts required in Malaysian forests – which, if compromised, would potentially allow encroachment and poaching in areas where gaps exist.
Thus far, the focus of this programme has been on terrestrial areas, but this model can also be duplicated and implemented for marine areas to safeguard coastal and marine biodiversity.
I would love to see the contract hiring of indigenous people as rangers under this programme to be converted to permanent positions and to be institutionalised so that this initiative will not be dependent on annual Budget allocations. As a first step, funding for a feasibility study could be afforded to assess the enabling of such permanent hires.
3. Step up efforts to recover population of wild animals that tigers need for food: Based on Malaysia’s first national tiger survey (2016-2020), fewer than 150 Malayan tigers remain in the wild. A critical element needed to recover Malaysia’s tiger population is to have a strategy to augment tiger prey.
This can be done by improving food availability conditions in prey habitats, and professionalising the captive breeding of prey animals like the sambar deer and or even bearded pigs (recognising that the latter may have been impacted by African swine fever disease).
Tiger recovery is greatly dependent on prey recovery. At the same time, we must make sure that tiger habitats are not further lost, degraded, and fragmented due to land use conversion for agriculture, mining, large-scale monoculture plantations, and building roads and infrastructure, as well as ensuring that poaching is eradicated.
4. Identify gaps and assess the effectiveness of current conservation initiatives: The National Biodiversity Policy outlines specific goals, targets, and actions essential for conserving biodiversity within the country. However, achieving these objectives requires a comprehensive understanding of the challenges, needs, and existing efforts across various sectors involved in biodiversity conservation.
WCS Malaysia proposes organising a series of targeted consultation workshops, each focused on different goals outlined in the policy, such as terrestrial biodiversity, marine biodiversity, safeguarding ecosystems, and enhancing ecological connectivity, among others.
These workshops will bring together relevant stakeholders to identify existing gaps and challenges, discuss additional requirements, including funding, explore updated methodologies, and re-evaluate current initiatives. The aim is to ensure a more coordinated and effective approach to achieving the policy’s goals.
5. Enhance the management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs): Marine conservation efforts are often given less attention than terrestrial ones, so WCS Malaysia hopes to see an increase in funds to improve the management effectiveness of MPAs, and to increase our understanding of other important but nonprotected marine areas through comprehensive marine biodiversity assessments; this will enable critical interventions and science-based recommendations to be applied in these areas.
In addition, a better understanding is needed to assess how local communities can play a more active role in marine conservation efforts.
The introduction of tools such as SMART (spatial monitoring and reporting tool) – which is designed to help conservationists manage and protect wildlife and wild places – can help standardise and streamline data collection, analysis, and reporting, making it easier for key information to get from the field to decisionmakers.
This system is widely used in terrestrial wildlife protection efforts by both government agencies and NGOs, but its application is limited within marine landscapes.
Funds to engage and empower local communities to be marine conservation stewards by improving abilities to gather basic necessities and affording enough resources for managers to apply tools such as SMART, and investing in marine research/biodiversity assessments with a clear targeted management intervention in mind would be beneficial.
6. Increased Budget allocation for human-wildlife conflict mitigation: Every year, we hear about numerous cases of human-wildlife conflict which often involve long-tailed macaques, elephants, wild boar, and crocodiles; yearly losses incurred run into the millions and sometimes even result in humans being injured or killed.
This is expected to increase as the habitats of these species keep shrinking due to deforestation and fragmentation caused by development projects and the expansion of linear infrastructure such as highways which cut across forest habitats.
There should be sufficient allocations to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in terms of staffing, affording conflict mitigation tools such as electric fences and other innovative tools that use newer technology, and wildlife population fertility control measures, as well as exploring insurance schemes to compensate smallholders and the public against financial losses.
S. PiarapakaranAssociation of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (Awer) president S. Piarapakaran
1. Energy use in the transportation sector: Before Covid-19 began in 2020, national final energy demand for 2019 showed high energy usage in the transportation sector at 37.6%, followed by the industrial sector at 28.5%. High energy allocation to the transportation sector is not economical or sustainable.
If a stricter exit and in-flow regime is introduced for vehicles, unnecessary traffic blockage over short distances can be avoided, especially on arterial roads. New intersections, ramps, turns, or even U-turns should be based on actual traffic management studies and not on demands from certain quarters alone. A reduction in traffic congestion will reduce fuel consumption.
Based on Awer’s national level study, there is an opportunity to have a good 60% public transport modal share. Integration as well as proper planning is vital to ensure an increase in public transport usage to assist the public to reduce their fuel cost expenditures.
2. Completion of the National Water Services Industry Restructuring (NWSIR) process: The first part of the NWSIR has been completed. The second part, outlined in the 10th Malaysia Plan (2011-2015), is supposed to parcel off nationally centralised sewerage operations (that is, the Indah Water Konsortium) and merge them with state water operators. The merger will return sewerage operations to state governments, to be regulated via the Water Services Industry Act model. This move has been delayed for more than a decade now.
Next year, the government will be tabling the 13th Malaysia Plan (2026-2030) and we still have a major component of the 10th Malaysia Plan being delayed. Awer urges the Madani government to complete this major part by 2025 so that holistic water treatment, water supply, and sewerage services can be operated at state level to achieve a sustainable solution. This will also assist the water services industry to move towards full cost recovery.
3. Ban explosive and nonexplosive fireworks beginning Jan 1, 2025: A few decades ago, fireworks and firecrackers were banned due to high incidents of bodily injury, loss of body parts, as well as being a fire hazard. However, these banned items were still being smuggled into the country and set off during festive seasons. Since 2018, some types of fireworks from two specific brands have been made legal for sale to the public.
Studies have shown that toxic fumes released when fireworks are set off contain a cocktail of chemicals, including metal oxides like lead (plumbum), sulphur, nitrogen oxides, dioxin, furan, and many other harmful substances. Beginning Jan 1, 2025, the government must ban both explosive and nonexplosive fireworks as well as firecrackers, as the acute exposure of toxic fumes will have long-term health impacts on humans as well as the possibility of entering our food chain.
Malaysian Nature Society president Anna Wong
1. Renewable energy investments like increasing funding for solar, wind, and hydroelectric projects.
2. Subsidies for homeowners and businesses to install renewable energy systems such as solar panels so that we are not solely dependent on nonrenewable energy
3. For climate change mitigation, investment in research and development for carbon capture and storage technologies.
4. Allocation to support community- and NGO-based projects such as RUGS (Rantaian Urban Green Space) to maintain green lungs in city centres as well as linkages among the fragmented forests in cities. This will help to provide fresh air and reduce greenhouse gasses’ effects on the atmosphere and slow down climate change.
5. Provide grants for local communities to develop green spaces, urban gardens, and conduct community clean-up efforts.
6. Support indigenous land stewardship and traditional ecological knowledge among Orang Asli or Orang Asal.
Dr Daljit Singh Karam SinghBiochar Association vice-president Dr Daljit Singh Karam Singh
1. For Budget 2025, a significant focus must be placed on environmental research, particularly regarding forest conservation and rehabilitation.
Degraded forests, often impacted by poor soil quality, require targeted studies and documentation to understand soil types and their mineral content. This knowledge is crucial, as soil serves as the foundation for nutrients and supports microbial activity, which is vital for composting and overall ecosystem health.
Investing in this research will inform the selection of suitable tree species for replanting, ensuring the success of forest conservation programmes.
Furthermore, increased funding is needed to promote awareness of our forest resources, highlighting their genetic diversity, especially in tropical forests, which are among the most diverse ecosystems on the planet.
2. Increased funding is also crucial for documenting and publicising our forest resources, highlighting their genetic diversity, especially in tropical forests. This information should be shared both locally and internationally, showcasing our environmental management efforts.
Dr Wong Ee PhinSociety for Conservation Biology-Malaysia Chapter president Dr Wong Ee Phin*
1. As humankind’s footprint grows, there are increasing interactions between people and wildlife such as elephants. Although human-elephant conflict mainly centres around crop damage, unfortunately, from time to time, there are cases of people and elephants getting injured or killed.
To be clear, this is not about people versus wildlife. We have to strive to look after both.
My wish for Budget 2025 is to support agriculture communities in fostering a harmonious coexistence with elephants and other wildlife, while at the same time preserving and restoring nature and its diverse ecosystems, valuing their services for all.
*Wong is also associate professor and principal investigator for the Management & Ecology of Malaysian Elephants, University of Nottingham Malaysia.
Prof Dr Ahmad IsmailEcological Association of Malaysia president Prof Dr Ahmad Ismail
There should be more allocations for the following:
1. Monitoring and protecting biodiversity and environmental quality.
2. Supporting research to get more information on our biodiversity, as Malaysia is the top 12th mega biodiversity country in the world.
3. Support more Cepa (communication, education, and public awareness) activities to ensure that Malaysians are supporting nature conservation and other environmental issues. For example, our plastic pollution has already become an international issue.
Photos: Filepics/The Star/Bernama/provided
