deforestation case study in malaysia

• 0 Shopping Cart

The impacts of rainforest deforestation in Malaysia

What are the impacts of rainforest deforestation in Malaysia?

The graph below shows the impact of deforestation on natural forest cover in Malaysia.

The map below shows the location of deforestation in Malaysia. The areas shaded green are primary forests, whereas the pink areas show deforestation.

Deforestation

In Borneo, orangutang numbers have fallen by 60 per cent since 1950

in Malaysia has had a range of local and global impacts.

What are the global impacts of rainforest deforestation in Malaysia?

Global Warming

The Malaysian rainforest is significant at a global level. The tree canopy absorbs carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. As soon as trees are felled, this stops, and more carbon dioxide remains in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is also released when fire is used to clear the rainforest. In these ways, deforestation is a major contributor to climate change.

Loss of Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the variety of plant and animal life in the world or a particular habitat. Rainforests are the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet. Clearing the rainforest means reduced biodiversity, and individual species can become endangered or extinct.

Species richness surveys in Malaysia show a 34.9% reduction in species richness in oil palm compared to forest habitats, and 79.6% of the species found in forest habitats were not found in oil palm habitats.

Species at risk in the Malaysian rainforest include Pygmy Elephants, Orangutans, Sumatran Rhinos and Malayan Tigers, all endangered.

As species are lost, so are many possible cures for life-threatening diseases.

What are the local impacts of rainforest deforestation in Malaysia?

Local Climate Change

Forests have been termed the “air conditioners” of the landscape because they keep things cool by evaporating water. The evaporated water forms clouds, which also contribute to cooling. If evaporation is not happening, then much of the sun’s energy goes into raising temperatures instead.

The clouds reflect a lot of the sun’s radiation back into space and are a source of rainfall. So when tropical forests are felled, local temperatures tend to rise, and rainfall patterns change, becoming less reliable and more extreme.

Therefore, deforestation reduces evapotranspiration, making the local area drier and increasing local temperatures.

The Decline of Indigenous Tribes

Malaysia’s Orang Asli have been stripped of historic lands and are more susceptible to deadly illness.

Loss of forest due to illegal logging has significantly reduced the bat population. Bats are a natural means by which fruit crops are pollinated, so there is an enormous impact on indigenous people and their food security when the forest is illegally cleared (a) because the food source has directly been removed through illegal logging and (b) because the bat population is no longer available to pollinate the wider forest area. Malaysia now has a situation where some communities have to pollinate fruit trees by hand. The problem is exacerbated by the increased use of pesticides, which further cause problems in maintaining wildlife and rainforest. Pesticides are being used more because the bat population no longer provides the natural means by which insect populations are managed.

Soil Erosion

Soil takes thousands of years to form. However, it can be stripped away very quickly. The removal of soil by rain and wind is known as soil erosion . The roots of vegetation, such as trees, bind the soil together. Once vegetation is removed, it becomes loose and can be easily eroded.

Additionally, when soil is exposed, nutrients are leached away by heavy rain, making the soil infertile.

A significant amount of carbon is stored in rainforest soils. Soil erosion releases the stored carbon into the atmosphere, enhancing the natural greenhouse effect and contributing to climate change.

Disputes between the state companies and indigenous people end in conflict.

Pollution of water sources through activities such as mining results in water shortages.

Economic Gains/Losses

It is estimated that illegal logging denies revenues to the people of Malaysia in the order of USD 500m per annum. It is also clear that indigenous people are having their land and, therefore, sources of food and livelihood denied to them at a cost exceeding USD 800 million per annum in compensation and welfare payments.

Illegal logging leads to the loss of forest biodiversity and ecosystem services deprives local communities of their rights and livelihoods and generates approximately US$10–15 billion annually in criminal proceeds. In national revenue terms, the World Bank estimates that Governments lose around USD 5 Billion per annum in direct taxation. Illegal logging can refer to timber from restricted forests, harvesting protected species or over allowable yields, harvesting in violation of land or tenure rights, and failing to pay taxes and royalties.

As areas become less biodiverse, the tourism industry may be negatively impacted.

As climate change is exacerbated by deforestation, produce yields may decrease due to the drier, hotter climate, which will influence trade and the economy.

Mining , logging, agriculture , hydroelectric power, and road building provide local people with jobs and increased incomes.

Products from tropical rainforest lands can be traded with other countries for profit. The palm oil industry has been the fourth-largest sector contributing to the economy for 15 to 18 years. In 2020, palm oil accounted for thirty-eight per cent of the value of Malaysia’s agricultural output and three per cent of its gross domestic product. The palm oil industry employs 441,000 people, half of whom are small landowners.

Companies that exploit rainforests pay taxes, supporting economic development and providing public services, such as healthcare and education.

Improved accessibility to rainforests through the construction of roads supports the tourist industry and connects rural to urban areas, further supporting economic development.

Premium Resources

Please support internet geography.

If you've found the resources on this page useful please consider making a secure donation via PayPal to support the development of the site. The site is self-funded and your support is really appreciated.

Related Topics

Use the images below to explore related GeoTopics.

Causes of rainforest deforestation in Malaysia

Topic home, share this:.

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
• Click to print (Opens in new window)

If you've found the resources on this site useful please consider making a secure donation via PayPal to support the development of the site. The site is self-funded and your support is really appreciated.

Search Internet Geography

Top posts and pages.

Latest Blog Entries

Pin It on Pinterest

• Click to share
• Print Friendly

Sustaining our Environment for Better Future pp 175–193 Cite as

Deforestation in Malaysia: The Current Practice and the Way Forward

• Abdelnaser Omran 3 &
• Odile Schwarz-Herion 4  
• First Online: 06 August 2019

1638 Accesses

5 Citations

Among global climate concerns, deforestation is one of the most critical, particularly in developing countries but also in industrial countries where forests are equally rhoded to make place for windmills and 5G masts in an attempt to satisfy the energy need and the requirements for fast data transfer in highly digitalized Smart Cities. Deforestation is an activity of permanent destruction—the clearing of earth’s forests on a massive scale, damaging huge land areas by removing indispensable sinks for CO 2 , destroying complex eco-systems, and causing a significant loss of biodiversity. In recent years, several efforts have been introduced and implemented to reduce deforestation, but appears such efforts are on the decline in some countries, including Malaysia. This chapter examines the factors that contribute to deforestation as based on the perception and understanding of residents from across Malaysia. A survey questionnaire of 59 respondents, randomly distributed among Malaysians in different parts of the country, indicate a majority of the participants believe urbanization is the main contributor to deforestation, with 56% of east Malaysia respondents and 40% of west Malaysia saying so. However, those conducting the survey concluded that palm oil plantation is, in fact, perceived as the principal cause of deforestation, since its weighted average was highest. —In fact, Malaysia is one of the biggest exporters for palm oil. The study also concluded that deforestation can be successfully reduced by numerous methods, including vertical housing—the building of structures on narrower plots of land than conventional houses.

Download chapter PDF

11.1 Introduction

Deforestation converts forest land to alternative, permanent, non-forested land to be used in agriculture, grazing or urban development (Van Kooten and Bulte 2000 ). Aliyu et al. ( 2014 ) stated that deforestation can be defined as the clearing of any area of its natural vegetation cover, which normally leads to a decrease in plant population, resulting in a loss of plant biodiversity. According to Indarto and Mutaqin ( 2016 ), deforestation is a major issue discussed in global climate investigations. Deforestation can lead to two important environmental challenges, namely, loss of biodiversity and rising greenhouse gas emissions due to the removal of trees as efficient natural CO 2 sinks . Forests are natural climate protectors by providing timber as a renewable resource and by binding CO 2 , thus acting as natural carbon dioxide sinks (Bundeswaldinventur 2015 ). Having nearly 350 million years of experience with sequestering carbon, trees convert CO 2 and H 2 O into cellulose, sugar and other carbon-containing carbohydrates via photosynthesis . In sum, forests are storing carbon at a greater rate than releasing it (Department of Environmental Conservation 2018 ). Metaphorically speaking, forests are the “lungs of the planet…allowing the planet to ‘breathe’” (Bouchard 2018 ) by an exchange between CO 2 and O 2 occurring in the leaves of the trees (Bouchard 2018 ). Meanwhile, Mather and Needle ( 1998 ) summarized deforestation thus:

The study of the casuality of trends in forest cover…does not readily yield the simplicity and elegance of explanation that would reward the ideal scientific endeavor. In the real world of human-driven change in land and land cover … numerous problems and difficulties … confound such an endeavor. The field cannot be successfully tilled as a disciplinary preserve, and neither reductionism nor holism alone seems to offer the approach necessary for success.[117–124]

According to Becek and Odihi ( 2008 ), human activities are globally recognized as the principal cause of deforestation. Deforestation is defined by FAO ( 2001 ) as the direct, human-induced conversion of forested land to non-forested land; presumably carried out for the permanent conversion (loss) of the forested area. Non-forested land that has been converted has subsequently been used for agriculture, logging, fuel, burning, grazing and improper forest management (Allen and Barnes 1985 ). Moreover, companies make use of the resources from the forest to produce tradable consumption goods, such as timber for planks and pulp (paper), goods that later are traded domestically and internationally through export. Commodities traded include palm oil (used principally for foods and cosmetics), pulp and timber. The raw materials are mainly supplied by developing countries, as export commodities are the main backbone of their economy (CFC 2005 ). Thus, deforestation has been one method for boosting income from exporting commodity goods in developing countries, which triggered the rate of deforestation to be higher compared to most developed countries. In a study conducted by Wicke et al. ( 2011 ), in Malaysia alone, there has been a 20% reduction in forest land, while Indonesia has seen a 30% reduction in a 30-year span. The fact that these countries are principal suppliers for 85% of world palm oil demand implies that palm oil plantation are among the major triggers of deforestation (Wicke et al. 2011 ).

One particular area, Borneo Island (which is shared by three Southeast Asian countries, Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia) has endured major deforestation, losing 50% of its lowland rainforest, mainly to massive deforestation for palm oil plantations (Shoumatoff 2017 ). Despite the massive land claim, Malaysia respondents stated that the country’s total forested area decreased by only 0.49 mil ha (from 18.78 to 18.27) from 1990 to 2014 (NRE 2016 ). Illegal deforestation has also been addressed by both governments (Indonesia and Malaysia) in Borneo, although in a survey, respondents from Malaysia stated there had been an improvement in the illegal deforestation situation (Lawson and MacFaul 2010 ). This improvement, due to regulations put into effect by the Malaysian government, indicates deforestation is not taken lightly by the government. However, several parties including Borneo locals, international organizations and ecological experts have stated their dissatisfaction regarding the government’s handling of the issue. Many believed the lack of transparency was a factor in the ineffective eradication of illegal logging, which worsened the deforestation crisis. The public urged both palm oil plantation owners and the government to take steps to manage risk. The most popular opinions promoted sustainable plantation and reforestation (Aguilar et al. 2007 ), to minimize ecological damage. However, as soil needs time to reclaim its natural nutrients, reforestation takes quite a while. Several alternative options for fuels, oils and timber were also put forth as ways to lessen a world consumption of these commodities, all of which contribute to the loss of rainforest. However, such alternative options often cost more than that which can be gained from Malaysia’s forest.

11.2 Problem Statement

Southeast Asia is known for its vast rainforests, which constitute about almost 20% of forest cover with the richest biodiversity in the world (Victor 2017 ). Most concentrated deforestation occurs in tropical rainforests (Bradford 2018 ). Malaysia is one of the countries with the fastest disappearing forests due to deforestation; this is now a huge problem, as most of the recent disasters such as mudslides and floods happened and are happening with greater frequency due to deforestation. Geologist Felix Tungkol, from Universiti Malaysia Sabah, has pointed to deforestation as the possible, primary cause of the country’s devastating mudslide of April 2017 (John 2017 ). According to a new global forest map developed in partnership with Google, Malaysia had the world’s highest rate of forest loss between 2000 and 2012 (See Fig. 11.1 ). The total forest loss in Malaysia during that period amounted to 14.4% of its year 2000 forest cover (Butler 2013 ). The loss translated to 47,278 square kilometers (18,244 square miles), an area larger than Denmark (Butler 2013 ).

Major forest countries which faced highest percentage forest loss between 2000–2012. (Source: Butler 2013 )

Although the EU itself is the world’s second-largest importer of palm oil and has subsidized it since a long time already, the European Commission has officially accused oil palm plantations of being the main culprit behind deforestation and climate change (Transportenvironment.org 2019 ; Ellis-Petersen 2018 ), but inconsistenly still continues to subsidize oil palm cultivation and the resulting deforestation (Transportenvironment.org 2019 ); meanwhile Marcus Mojigoh, vice-president of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentarians’ Conference on Environment and Development (APPCED) admitted that palm oil plantations caused Sarawak natives to be deprived from native lands on Borneo Island (Patrick 2017 ). Reports regarding climate change and even the dangers of primate extinction in Malaysia led to a possible ban of palm oil imports from Malaysia to the EU. Numerous campaigns that inform consumers about the dangers of unsustainable deforestation surrounding palm oil plantation activities have been put in the spotlight by major international nonprofit charitable organizations such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) (BBC 2018 ). The independent campaigns focus on keeping consumers from eating products with palm oil as a main ingredient, such as Nutella from Ferrero (which sources its palm oil from Malaysia), claiming that besides the unsustainability of the industry, palm oil also results in bad health outcomes like cancer, a claim that the company later denied, drawing on tests by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) and by the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) (Sundram 2017 ). The EU ban itself may cause Malaysia to lose RM10 billion revenues from export activities, or 15% of its total exports (Patrick 2017 ). Besides how Malaysia suffered in the area of international trade of palm oil, it also endured several landslide disasters in recent years due to deforestation. As is known, deforestation is the catalyst of erosion in lands with steep contours (slopes of more than 20%); without vegetation (trees) to apply pressure, the area is prone to landslides (Abidin 2016 ). The Sabah (Borneo) mudslide in 2017 and the Sarawak landslide in 2009 are actual cases of deforestation-caused landslides (John 2017 ; Felsinger 2009 ). With disasters arising from the condition of the land, comes climate change, which also figures into the picture of massive deforestation (UNFCC 2001 ). Greenhouse gases from industrial activities cannot be absorbed adequately due to deforestation, which leads to rising temperatures (Sinha and Swaminathan 1991 ). In general, temperature increases may affect a community as air quality drops; and, as the rainforest, which absorbs carbon dioxide and produces oxygen, shrinks. Although this issue cannot be directly measured in terms of monetary value, in the long term, it will affect sustainability of any business that depends on the existence of the rainforest (palm oil, mining and timber) and the living condition of residents, not only locals but also worldwide, since climate change is a global phenomenon. Thus, the chapter’s main aim is to find out the causes and effects of deforestation in Malaysia.

11.3 Literature Review

11.3.1 deforestation.

Forests play a role in maintaining the sustainability of life on earth by providing abundant benefits for humans and by being an essential habitat in the ecosystem (WWF 2017 ). In addition, the biological diversity of two-thirds of terrestrial species is incorporated in forests, and almost 30% of the surface of earth is covered by forests (WWF 2017 ). From this perspective, the role of the forest is important in regulating the temperature of the world as well as producing freshwater flows (Ellison et al. 2017 ). Water availability and its cooling function is also underlined in the paper (Ellison et al. 2012 ; Hesslerová et al. 2013 ; Syktus and McAlpine 2016 ). The ability of trees to capture and redistribute the sun’s energy is how they deliver a cooling function (Pokorný et al. 2010 ), and they have an infiltration capacity, which occurs in the soil after a rainfall; under appropriate conditions this capacity can improve groundwater recharge (Calder 2005 ; Neary et al. 2009 ). However, forested regions have diminished over time (Pongratz et al. 2010 ); despite environmental awareness and activism, the area of destruction of tropical rainforests is escalating worldwide, one factor being deforestation (Chakravarty et al. 2012 ). The term ‘deforestation’ means alternative permanent conversion of forest land into non-forested area or removal of forested area on a massive scale without replantation (Bradford 2018 ). The alternative land is used for urban development, agriculture or grazing (Van Kooten & Bulte 2000 ). NASA ( 2007 ) states that in deforestation : “oftentimes there are multiple processes that work simultaneously, rarely …caused by a single direct cause, for instance, after [a] logging activity [has] been conducted, the road building for a road expansion followed this activity”. The destruction of forests has been ongoing from human activities, with various proximate causes such as large-scale commercial oil palm plantations, agribusiness, industrial logging (Yong et al. 2014 ). It adversely affects particular geographic areas that lack a wood supply for fuel and water resources (Barnes 1985 ). The result is decreasing greenhouse gas absorption, which increases the severity of global warming, drying out soils easily, and damaging land quality (Radachowsky 2018 ). A specific geographical area can be affected by deforestation (Barnes 1985 ); however, this chapter is concerned mostly with deforestation in the tropics, located mostly in developing countries (Myers 1994 ) where tropical forest area has shrunk (Barraclough and Ghimire 2000 ). Assessment of how forests changed over time was monitored using a balance between forest gain and loss, denoted with “tree canopy cover” in certain geographic regions (Chazdon 2014 ).

11.3.2 Palm Oil

The palm oil industry was criticized due its harmful impact on the environment, particularly on lowland tropical rainforest. The biggest cause of deforestation in Southeast Asia is linked to expansion of palm oil plantations, which threatened animal habitat (Klara 2011 ) and triggered biodiversity loss (Wilcove and Koh 2010 ). In a recent study, it was found that monoculture oil palm plantations converted natural forest, thereby decreasing overall diversity of plant and animal species, which count on the natural forest for their existence (Aratrakorn et al. 2006 ; Maddox 2007; Carlson et al. 2012 ). Research conducted by (Vijay et al. 2016 ) analyzed trends of total planted palm oil area from 1989–2013 in distinct regions; only Southeast Asia (Indonesia and Malaysia) deforestation patterns with skewed perspective occurred, but, in the future this might be continual. Furthermore, based on data, Southeast Asia is rapidly expanding in oil palm planted areas, and expansion has occurred in other regions. For Malaysia, 39% of vulnerable forest saw deforestation and conversion to palm oil plantation. Palm plantation as the main direct cause of deforestation was hard to quantify, since there was land-cover change was lacking, as were subnational patterns, incomplete understanding of the complex causes and a changing definition of forest (Fitzherbert et al. 2008 ). Another study categorized the palm oil plant as forest and therefore not a contributor to deforestation (Sheil et al. 2009 ). Moreover, half of all palm oil expansion comes at the expense of primary and secondary forest while the rest is owed to the previous conversion of cropland (into rubber plantations, for instance). Klara ( 2011 ) showed a large portion of Malaysian deforestation was a result of oil palm expansion in 1990 and 2007.

11.3.3 Primate Extinction

Deforestation has another negative impact: As stated by Whitmore and Sayer ( 1992 ), species extinction might depend on the distribution of the species in the area of the forest and on disturbances such as change in biomass and structures. Every country has reserve forest land on which the number of species in the region can be studied. Establishment of a reserve area protects species from extinction. Ecosystem fragmentation, normally the result of human disturbances like deforestation, has caused species extinction. Changes in forest landscapes impact animal life and biodiversity (Turner 1996 ).

11.3.4 Importance of Sustainable Plantations

In Malaysia, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) includes oil palm growers, retailing outlets and NGOs, who participate in solving issues and setting up basic practices for sustainable palm oil production. According to Nikoloyuk et al. ( 2010 ), this association certifies those plantation companies who set aside areas for preservation. One of the interesting principles established by the association is that primary forest and conserved areas should not be cleared for palm oil plantation. It also respects the rights of landlords and farmers. Sime Darby is an outstanding example in the practice of sustainable plantation; it maintains natural forests with estates, wetland areas, river boundaries, areas with gradient of more than 25 degrees, and native-owned lands. Regarding the latter, the company engages the leader of the native community before developing any land for plantation use, and does not move forward without the leader’s consent. Sime Darby also pays compensation to landlords.

11.3.5 Reforestation

Reforestation is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation (Wikipedia 2018 ). In places where forests have been lost or degraded, restoration or reforestation projects may be undertaken to guarantee or accelerate the recovery of forests (Stanturf 2005 ). In Sarawak, reforestation was aimed to restore the environment; to ensure sustainability in timber production; to provide employment to poor people by offering them engagement in reforestation activity; and to signify the role of agro forestry in the development of rural communities. Rural communities in Sarawak still depend on traditional medicines rather than the services of hospitals (Hua 2004 ). Agro forestry proposes the planting of medicinal plants and wild fruits instead of timber. It provides financial return and plantation ownership to farmers.

11.3.6 Urbanization

Another cause of deforestation is rapid urbanization (Jones 2010 ). Population increases in urban centers compared to rural areas (Jones 2010 ). Urbanization causes myriad problems like congestion, environmental degradation and rapid growth. According to Tan et al. ( 2013 ), high-density population conditions put pressure on nature. In Singapore, deforestation is due to urbanization, this island city-state has the lowest area of original forest left. However, Singapore is regarded as a green city because it practices an urban greenery policy. Singaporeans have conventional and rooftop gardens, parks and tree-lined streets. The effects of urbanization are essential in calculating the costs of economic development. Changes in the number of people, migration and industrial revolution speed up urbanization. Urbanization transforms the ecology and causes the loss of agricultural land. This trend is significantly exacerbated by the increasingly aggressive push towards Smart Megacities over the last few years, which leads to additional felling of trees and deforestation even in traditionally environmentally conscious European countries like UK and Germany to make place for 5G masts (Brown et al. 2015 ; Connectiv.Events 2019 ; Nina 2019 ) in favor of faster data transfer and for coal or windmills in favor of cheap energy (Dumke 2018 ; see also Chap. 13 , Sects. 13.3.4.2 and 13.4 ). The high energy need of Smart Cities due to the large number of technical devices used in them (see Chap. 13 ), occasionally coupled with populist measures to justify the eco-label of Smart Cities and with legal incentives by subsidies for renewable energies, e.g. in Germany, lead to an overhasty extension of wind energy along with deforestation in favor of windmills, even in windless areas of Germany, meanwhile triggering hundreds of initiatives to stop the extension of windmills to avoid the ongoing deforestation, the endangerment of threatened animal species and the distortion of the landscape by windmills (Dumke 2018 ; Der Spiegel 2016 ).

11.3.7 Illegal Logging

Illegal logging comprises many actions, including the violation of laws, particularly, national laws, by human activities such as the sale of timber, and the harvest, transport or purchase of forest products. Illegal logging is pervasive in all parts of the world, including the developing world, where timber provider countries constitute over half of timber exports and production transacted through illegal logging activity. Perpetrators gain certain economic benefits such as reduced legal and regulatory compliance costs and, sometimes, price reduction to boost sales (Reboredo 2013 ). The immediate deforestation and degradation of forest provokes illegal logging activity (Gani 2013 ). Illegal activities that incorporate in illegal logging are not only specific to the forest sector, but they also included processing illegal timber, trading wood and producing wood (Bouriaud and Niskanen 2003a , b ). Malaysia has become the 10th largest furniture exporter among Southeast Asia countries of tropical timber, timber products and furniture (FDMASIA 2018 ); at the same time illegal logging was the 4th largest contributor to Malaysia’s economy in 2008 (Gani 2013 ). However, Malaysia’s exports and domestic goods were harvested illegally, with harvest overcutting accounting for 40% and illegal logging rate 35% (Greenpeace 2004 ). In addition, the impact of illegal logging has been categorized into direct impact and non-direct impact, with direct relating to premiums, royalty losses as a part of overall government revenue, while indirect impact is associated with forest and land damage, wildlife loss and possible extinction of endangered species (Gani 2013 ).

11.3.8 Landslide

Landslide incidents threaten human lives and the security of the public, damaging property and often taking lives. Climate-related factors also can contribute to landslides. as can the unregulated development of slopes due to human negligence (Ahmad et al. 2014 ). Besides these factors, deforestation interferes with the soil, causing making it lose its holding capacity during heavy rainfalls, again leading to landslides (Vasantha and Bhagavanulu 2008 ). Development is another trend that increases landslide occurrence in Malaysia’s hilly areas. Over the last 50 years, this development in mountainous centers has generated rapid expansion of areas that have been built-up, usually developed with poor urban planning and inadequate territorial infrastructure (Pellicani et al. 2013 ). Furthermore, new construction in hillslope areas is unstable (Aksoy and Kavvas 2005 ); this added to the absence of trees to hold soil after deforestation results in decreased shear strength and subsequent landslide. In the case of heavy rain, the soil particles themselves are affected by shear stress, which also increases the chances for landslide. This is according to landslide expert Satish Thigale (Min 2015 ).

11.3.9 Mining Activities

Based on Tse ( 2011 ), the Mineral Industry of Malaysia states that Malaysia has identified several categories of mineral resources such as bauxite, coal, gold, iron ore, petroleum, silver, tin, clays, copper, natural gas, monazite, limestone, silica, zircon and tantalum. Whether small or large in scale, mining operations are inherently disruptive to the environment, producing enormous quantities of waste that can have deleterious impact for decades (see Chap. 2 , Sects. 2.3.1.2 and 2.3.2.3 ). Environmental deterioration caused by mining occurs mainly as a result of inappropriate and wasteful work practices and rehabilitation measures. Mining has a several activities that potentially adversely impact the natural environment, society and cultural heritage, as well as impacting communities close to mining operations (see Chap. 2 , Sect. 2.1 ). Mining activities may negatively impact commercial and/or non-commercial living resources in the mining locale (see also Chap. 2 , Sect. 2.3.1.2 ). Mining activities can cause erosion, pollute water sources, destroy riverine vegetation and deplete supported origin woodland habitats. According to Sonter et al. ( 2018 ), mining poses serious and highly specific threats to biodiversity. However, mining can also be a means for financing alternative livelihood paths that, over the long-term, may prevent biodiversity loss.

11.4 Research Method

The purpose of conducting this study is to investigate the causes, effects and possible risk management steps in the deforestation issues in Malaysia. The research is based on a site survey aimed at collecting all necessary information in an effective manner. The survey offered questions on the causes and effects of deforestation (categories based on collected relevant research, review and revision by the participants in the initial pilot questionnaires. The questionnaire included three parts: the first section had two questions, the first being “What is the greatest contributing factor to deforestation?” and the second, ”What are the negative impacts of deforestation to the societies and environment?” The second section included seven questions, including five questions about level of awareness on deforestation, and two questions on respondents’ general knowledge of deforestation in Malaysia. The third section was to provide or suggest possible recommendations to reduce or eliminate deforestation in Malaysia. The Likert scale was used in the design of the questionnaire, extending from (1 = strongly disagree) to (5 = strongly agree). A non-probability sampling technique called convenience sampling was selected to conduct this study. Seventy-five questionnaires were randomly handed out to selected residents in different areas in Malaysia including some from outside of Malaysia. Only 64 questionnaire forms were filled in and returned. Of these, 5 of them were excluded due to incompleteness. However, 59 questionnaires were considered and analyzed, yielding a response rate of 78.6%.

11.5 Results Analysis

From the survey we conducted, 95% of respondents are aware of the deforestation issue in Malaysia. Furthermore, we gathered data on the effects of deforestation in Malaysia. The findings showed that 24 out of the total 59 respondents report being affected by deforestation there (43%), while those reporting being unaffected were 19 (34%). Among the affected respondents, 15 are from the eastern part of Malaysia, 6 from west and 3 from outside the country (see Table 11.1 ).

All respondents agreed that palm oil plantations, logging activity, urbanization, mining activities and agriculture are contributing factors in deforestation. The study found the respondents deem palm oil plantations to be the largest contributor to deforestation, among other factors, with a weighted average of 44%. Urbanization is viewed as the second largest contributor to deforestation, with a weighted average of 32%. Other perceived contributing factors to deforestation are shown in Table 11.2 .

Table 11.2 shows that most respondents from both East Malaysia and West Malaysia agreed urbanization is the primary cause of deforestation, and only 56% of the respondents from East Malaysia stated urbanization as the highest contributing factor to deforestation, and 40% from West Malaysia perceiving the same. With regard to the participants from outside Malaysia, it was found from the analysis that outsider respondents perceived palm oil plantations to be the main cause and contributor to deforestation. 86% of these believed that palm oil plantation to be the primary cause of deforestation. From the total respondents, 44% selected palm oil plantation as the primary cause of deforestation, followed by urbanization at 32%, and mining at 13%. 12 respondents strongly agreed deforestation causes climate change. Of the 12, 5 were from east, 5 were from West Malaysia, and the other 2 were from outside of Malaysia. 58% of respondents from outside Malaysia agreed that deforestation will cause climate change, whereas only 38% from East Malaysia with 40% of them in West Malaysia agreed that deforestation could cause climate change. Table 11.3 depicts the results obtained from the respondents who had participated from outside Malaysia on the negative results that Malaysian residents report they may face due to deforestation.

As presented in Table 11.3 , it can be seen that the respondents from East Malaysia had the highest percentage value of “strongly agree” that deforestation will cause landslides, followed by 45% of west Malaysians agreeing to the same.

11.6 Discussion and Suggestions

As obtained results from the analyzed generated based on the participants’ perspectives, it is noted that the majority of the respondents feel they are affected by deforestation, while others are not sure. A total of 24 respondents who responded affirmatively, 16 were from East Malaysia, 6 from West Malaysia and the rest from out of the country. In fact, most of the deforestation in Malaysia has taken place in East Malaysia (Shoumatoff 2017 ). Therefore, it is reasonable the majority of affected respondents come from there. The average of respondents who chose palm oil plantations as the main cause of deforestation was 44%, and most of these were from outside Malaysia. However, the majority of Malaysian participants in this survey believed urbanization to be the top crucial factor of deforestation, with 56% from East Malaysia and 40% from West Malaysia. However, it concluded that palm oil plantations are a main cause of deforestation, since this category has the highest average among all of them, and it cannot be denied that Malaysia is one of the biggest exporters of palm oil. As Basiron ( 2004 ) stated, palm oil is a good commodity, helping eradicate rural poverty, and Malaysia has a suitable climate for palm, as it leads in palm oil exporting. Our respondents did believe the effects of deforestation could lead to negative disasters such landslide, climate change and primate extinction. Most of the participants from East Malaysian agreed climate change to be the effect of deforestation, while the majority in the western part of Malaysia chose landslide as the effect of deforestation. However, the respondents from outside Malaysia who participated in the survey mostly agreed that deforestation impacts on both primate extinction and climate change. All the above observed causes in our obtained findings are almost in line with past studies’ findings. For instance, three in five Malaysians will be exposed to climate change vis-à-vis increasing average surface temperature at the end of the twenty-first century (Tangang et al. 2012 ). The changes in the forest landscape impact animal life and biodiversity. Turner ( 1996 ) in his study showed that hillside developments can have serious irreversible impacts on the immediate surroundings and downstream environments in the form of deforestation, soil erosion, water pollution, the extinction of flora and fauna, flash flood and landslides (Lime and Lee 1992 ).

11.7 Recommendations

Based on the obtained results, quite a number of respondents chose palm oil plantation as the primary cause of deforestation. In fact, palm oil makes up 15% of Malaysia’s total export (Patrick 2017 ). FAOSTAT ( 2015 ) found that palm oil dominates the country’s agricultural production with 17.5 million tons produced in 2009; this accounts for about 40% of the world’s palm oil production. In 2008, Malaysia exported 14.1 million tons of palm oil (with a value of 903 US$/ton). However, a palm oil plantation requires considerable land to yield a crop. The moist climate of Malaysia suits oil palms. Based on FAO’s data about land use in Malaysia from 2007 (FAO 2019 ), palm oil plantations used about 42,380 km 2 out of 328,300 km 2 of total land area. Before planting oil palm, land must be cleared. In Malaysia, the common techniques to clear the land are burning (Tegnäs and Svedén 2002 ) or ploughing and weeding (Clay 2004 ). Such practices actually contribute to several bad effects, such as climate change, landslide and primate extinction. To overcome the problem, in the following section we herewith propose four recommendations we believe serve the solution to deforestation. They are sustainable plantation, reforestation, disaster risk management and vertical housing.

11.7.1 Sustainable Plantation

Sustainable management of plantations is important for ensuring an adequate supply of wood and other forest products for future generations (Sankar et al. 2000 ). Harwood and Nambiar ( 2014 ) state that sustained productivity is, arguably, the best measure for integrating the functioning of planted forests, and changes in productivity signal the direction for changes in response to management practices and ecological events including climate change. Deforestation is one of the critical problems to address, because it has several negative effects. Sustainable plantation management is a safer, better technique of oil palm planting. Through it, a plantation keeps going without negatively impacting the environment. So, it can keep generating benefit both for company and country. Sustainable plantation works by not destroying the forest to build new plantations, but by minimizing the environmental footprint, so that the basic rights of local owners and local farmers are fully respected. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil was formed in 2004, is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, and has its secretariat office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It aims to promote the growth and consumption of sustainable palm oil products while using credible global standards in producing palm oil and active engagement of stakeholders. It has more than 3082 member organizations. RSPO is now a standard for sustainable palm oil, consisting of eight principles and criteria that should be fulfilled by members. The principles and criteria relate to social, environmental and economic good practices. In order to build a sustainable plantation, following guidelines and principles of RSPO will be beneficial for any plantation company in implementing sustainable palm oil plantation.

11.7.2 Reforestation

Locatelli et al. ( 2015 ) stated that tropical reforestation has been highlighted as an important intervention for climate change mitigation because of its carbon storage potential. Reforestation and afforestation have both been integrated as forestry-based mitigation schemes into the international climate change regime (Aguilar et al. 2007 ; UNFCC 2001 ). Reforestation is the reforestation of forests that have been barren; it is the planting of forests that are barren due to felling or due to natural disasters. The purpose of reforestation is to improve the quality of human life, especially through enhancing the quality of natural resources. The other benefit of reforestation is to maintain the balance of nature between people, who need to live well, and the rest of nature. Reforestation is useful to prevent flooding, as the roots of the trees protect the soil and prevent the runoff of water, causing flooding. The practice also helps prevent global warming. Reforestation and greening are linked, since by encouraging reforestation, the environment will be cooler, ensuring groundwater availability, and so greater soil fertility. However, reforestation alone is not enough. We must also avoid actions that degrade and pollute the environment to begin with.

11.7.3 Disaster Risk Management

Deforestation can cause landslides if vegetation is not adequate to provide pressure holding in the soil (Abidin 2016 ). As stated, it is widely known that one of the effects of deforestation is landslide, a disaster that can cost lives. In order to prevent casualties, Malaysia needs a disaster response team who stand ready to handle emergency situations. This has been implemented through the establishment of the SMART team—the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team. It was established in May 18, 1994, under the National Security Council with the approval of the cabinet. It consists of several members of the Fire and Rescue Department of Malaysia, the Royal Malaysian Police and the Malaysian Armed Forces (SMART 2017 ). This team needs to be ready to provide disaster relief and rescue victims. Malaysia must maintain the SMART team to keep evolving as a society that is advancing as the times require.

11.8 Conclusion

Based on the findings and discussion above, it can be concluded that the majority of the respondents were aware deforestation is happening in Malaysia. This aligns with past studies which also showed that palm oil plantation is perceived as one of the primary causes of deforestation (Klara 2011 ; Wilcove and Koh 2010 ). Among the respondents, 43% experienced the effects of deforestation in one or in more than one way. Aside from palm oil plantation, urbanization is named the second cause of deforestation in Malaysia by the respondents. The increasing demand of housing complexes and commercial areas under the development of the countries and region cause deforestation in Malaysia (Yong et al. 2014 ), this is agreed by 32% of the respondents. Aside of palm oil plantation and urbanization, mining, agriculture and logging are also considered causes of deforestation. Meanwhile, the majority of the respondents in general identified climate change, primate extinction and landslides as the effects of deforestation. To manage and reduce the possibility of increased loss due to deforestation, replacing horizontal housing with vertical housing is suggested, as are reforestation, sustainable plantation practices and outing in place excellent disaster risk management teams.

Abidin, N. Z. (2016). Environmental concerns in Malaysian construction industry . Pulau Pinang: Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Google Scholar  

Aguilar, L. O. R. E. N. A., Araujo, A. R. I. A. N. A., & Quesada-Aguilar, A. N. D. R. E. A. (2007). Reforestation, afforestation, deforestation, climate change and gender. Fact Sheet . Costa Rica: IUCN.

Ahmad, J., Lateh, H., & Saleh, S. (2014). Landslide hazards: Household vulnerability, resilience and coping in Malaysia. Journal of Education and Human Development, 3 (3), 149–155.

Aksoy, H., & Kavvas, M. L. (2005). A review of hillslope and watershed scale erosion and sediment transport models. Catena, 64 (2), 247–271.

Article   Google Scholar  

Aliyu, A., Modibbo, M. A., Medugu, N. I., & Ayo, O. (2014). Impact of deforestation on socio- economic development of Akwanga Nassarawa state. International Journals of Science, Environment and Technology, 3 (2), 403–416.

Allen, J. C., & Barnes, D. F. (1985). The causes of deforestation in developing countries. Annals of the Association of American Geographers , 75(2), 163–184.

Aratrakorn, S., Thunhikorn, S., & Donald, P. F. (2006). Changes in bird communities following conversion of lowland forest to oil palm and rubber plantations in southern Thailand. Bird Conservation International, 16 (01), 71–82.

Barnes, D. (1985). Understanding fuel wood prices in technical paper 61 . Washington, D.C. Developing Nations. World Bank Agriculture and Rural Development Department. Washington. D.C. Processed.

Barnes, D. F., & Allen, J. C. (1985). The causes of deforestation in developing countries. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 75 (2), 163–184.

Barraclough, S., & Ghimire, K. B. (2000). Agricultural expansion and tropical deforestation . London: Earthscan.

Basiron, Y. A. C. K. W. (2004). The oil palm and its sustainability. Journal of Oil Palm Research, 16 , 1–10.

BBC (2018). Palm oil: What are the issues? https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/39492207 (1/4/2018).

Becek, K., & Odihi, J. O. (2008). Identification and assessment of factors affecting forest depletion in Brunei Darussalam. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, xxxvii (B2), 209–214.

Bouchard, P. (2018). Trees and carbon dioxide: What is the true connection? Retrieved from https://medium.com/the-philipendium/trees-and-carbon-dioxide-what-is-the-truth-c7f8c9d12602 on 23 September, 2018.

Bouriaud, L., & Niskanen, A. (2003a). Illegal removals in the context of the sound use of wood . Paper presented to the international symposium on strategies for the sound use of wood, UNECE Timber Committee, 24–27th March, Poiana Brasov, Romania. http://www.unece.org/trade/timber/docs/sem-1/papers/r30Niskanen.doc

Bouriaud, L., & Niskanen, A. (2003b). Illegal logging in the context of the sound use of wood . TIM/SEM.1/2003/R.30, FAO and the economic Commission for Europe, seminar on strategies for the sound use of wood, Poiana Brasov, Romania.

Bradford, A. (2018). Deforestation: Facts, Causes & Effects . Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/27692-deforestation.html on September 25, 2018.

Brown T., Fitch M., Owens D., Saunders S., Sutton A., & Temple S. (2015). Meeting the challenge of “Universal” coverage, reach and reliability in the coming 5G era . In: Institute for Communication Systems −5 G Innovation Centre (ed.) 5 G White Paper. University of Surrey, Guildford.

Bundeswaldinventur. (2015). Selected results of the third National Forest Inventory . Retrieved from https://www.bundeswaldinventur.de/en/third-national-forest-inventory/the-forests-as-climate-protectors-still-a-carbon-sink/ on 16 September, 2018.

Butler, R. (2013). Malaysia has the world’s highest deforestation rate, reveals Google forest map . http://news.mongabay.com/2013/1115-worlds-highest-deforestation-rate.html#hYUdzXG5ImXd66Wl.99

Calder, I. R. (2005). Blue revolution: Integrated land and water resource management: Integrated land and water resources management (2nd ed.). London/Sterling: Earthscan.

Carlson, K. M., Curran, L. M., Ratnasari, D., Pittman, A. M., Soares-Filho, B. S., Asner, G. P., Trigg, S. N., Gaveau, D. A., Lawrence, D., & Rodrigues, H. O. (2012). Committed carbon emissions, deforestation, and community land conversion from oil palm plantation expansion in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109 (19), 7559–7564.

Article   CAS   Google Scholar  

CFC. (2005). Overview of the situation of commodities in developing countries . Office of the Chairman of the group of 77. New York.

Chakravarty, S., Ghosh, S. K., Suresh, C. P., Dey, A. N., & Shukla, G. (2012). Deforestation: Causes, effect and control strategies . Plandu Ranchi: InTech.

Chazdon, R. L. (2014). Second growth: The promise of tropical forest regeneration in an age of deforestation . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Book   Google Scholar  

Clay, J. W. (2004). World agriculture and the environment – A commodity-by-commodity guide to impacts and practices. WWF . Washington: Island Press.

Connectiv.Events. (2019). Achtung! Sollen in Städten, Dörfern und Straßen alle Bäume gefällt werden, um G5 nicht zu behindern?? Retrieved from https://connectiv.events/achtung-sollen-in-den-staedten-und-an-autobahnen-allebaeume-gefaellt-werden-um-g5-nicht-zu-behindern/ on March 15, 2019.

Department of Environmental Conservation. (2018). Trees: The carbon storage experts.. Retrieved from https://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/47481.htmlReceive Email Updates from DEC on August 16, 2018.

Der Spiegel. (2016). Energie: Vom Winde verwöhnt; 2 July, 2016 . Retrieved from http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-145638273.html on 21 September, 2018.

Dumke H. (2018). Auch für Windräder wird Wald gerodet: Was daran anders ist . Retrieved from https://www.nrz.de/region/auch-fuer-windraeder-wird-wald-gerodet-was-daran-anders-ist-id215370885.html on 19 September 2018.

Ellison, D. N., Futter, M., & Bishop, K. (2012). On the forest cover–water yield debate: From demand- to supply-side thinking. Global Change Biology, 18 , 806–820.

Ellison, D., Morris, C. E., Locatelli, B., Sheil, D., Cohen, J., Murdiyarso, D., Gutierrez, V., et al. (2017). Trees, forests and water: Cool insights for a hot world. Global Environmental Change, 43 , 51–61.

Ellis-Petersen H. (2018). How palm oil ban has made the EU a dirty word in Malaysia. Angry farmers despair at what will happen to their livelihoods when the Brussels biofuels ban takes effect in 2020. In: The Guardian Online , 25 April, 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/26/how-palm-oil-ban-has-made-the-eu-a-dirty-word-in-malaysia on September 26, 2018.

FAO. (2001). Deforestation , http://www.fao.org/3/j9345e/j9345e07.htm

FAO. (2010). Global forest resources assessment 2010 . http://www.fao.org/docrep/013/i1757e/i1757e.pdf

FAO. (2019). Land use . Retrieved from http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#country/131 on May 1, 2019.

FAOSTAT database [Internet]. (2015). Food and Agriculture organization of the United Nations . Rome (Italy). c2015. Available from: http://faostat3.fao.org/home/E

FDMASIA. (2018). Tropical timber market report IV , https://www.fdmasia.com/index.php/focus/item/531-tropical-timber-market-report . [17 October 2018].

Felsinger, A. (2009). Deadly Malaysian landslide blamed on rainforest logging . Retrieved from http://planetsave.com/2009/01/27/deadly-malaysian-landslide-blamed-on-rainforest-logging/

Fitzherbert, E. B., Struebig, M. J., Morel, A., Danielsen, F., Brühl, C. A., Donald, P. F., & Phalan, B. (2008). How will oil palm expansion affect biodiversity? Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 23 (10), 538–545.

Forest Legality Initiative. (2013). Risk tool, Malaysia , https://forestlegality.org/risk-tool/country/malaysia

Gani, I. Q. L. M. (2013). Current situation of illegal logging in Peninsular Malaysia. International Journal of Sciences Research Article, 2 , (Issue June 2013). ISSN 2305-3925 http://www.ijsciences.com/pub/pdf/V2-201306-04.pdf

Global Forest Watch (2017). Tree cover loss in Malaysia . Retrieved November 2, 2017 from https://www.globalforestwatch.org/dashboards/country/MYS

Greenpeace. (2004). Environmental investigation agency (EIA)/Telapak; profiting from plunder: How Malaysia smuggles endangered wood . Telapak: Greenpeace/WWF.

Harwood, C. E., & Nambiar, E. K. S. (2014). Sustainable plantation forestry in South-East Asia . (Canberra CSIRO Client Report EP14685, 95p) Australia: CSIRO.

Hesslerová, P., Pokorný, J., Brom, J., & Rejšková–Procházková, A. (2013). Daily dynamics of radiation surface temperature of different land cover types in a temperate cultural landscape: Consequences for the local climate. Ecological Engineering, 54 , 145–154.

Hua, S. L. (2004). Introducing the cultivation of medicinal plants and wild fruits in Forest rehabilitation operations on former shifting cultivation sites in Sarawak Malaysia: Issues and challenges. Southeast Asian Studies, 42 (1), 15–25. (199).

Indarto, J., & Mutaqin, D. J. (2016). An overview of theoretical and empirical studies on deforestation. Journal of International Development and Cooperation, 22 (1 & 2), 107–120.

John, B. (2017). Deforestation likely behind deadly Sabah mudslide, says expert . Retrieved from https://www.nst.com.my/news/2017/04/227539/deforestation-likely-behind-deadly-sabah-mudslide-says-expert

Jones, T. (2010). Urbanization, deforestation, reforestation . Retrieved from http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2010/02/11/urbanization-deforestation-reforestation/

Klara, A. (2011) Environmental consequences of the palm oil industry in Malaysia (Seminar series nr). Department of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences and Physical Geography and Ecosystem Analysis, Lund University, Solvegatan, Lund, Sweden. Retrieved from http://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=2155833&fileOId=2155834

Lawson, S., & MacFaul, L. (2010). Illegal logging and related trade: Indicators of the global response (pp. 50–64). London: Chatham House.

Lime, R. P., & Lee, S. W. (1992). Hill development, proceedings of the seminar . Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Nature Society.

Locatelli, B., Catterall, C. P., Imbach, P., Kumar, C., Lasco, R., Marín-Spiotta, E., Mercer, B., Powers, J. S., Schwartz, N., & Uriarte, M. (2015). Tropical reforestation and climate change: Beyond carbon. Restoration Ecology, 23 (4), 337–343.

Mather, A. S., & Needle, C. L. (1998). The forest transition: A theoretical basis. Area, 30 (2), 117–124.

Min, S. (2015). Deforestation causes landslide . Retrieved from https://blog.nus.edu.sg/a0115786/2015/03/31/article-deforestation-causes-landslide/ . Accessed from 23 Apr 2018.

Myers, N. (1994). Tropical deforestation: Rates and patterns. In K. Brown & D. W. Pearce (Eds.), The causes of tropical deforestation (pp. 27–40). London: UCLP.

Nasa. (2007). Causes of deforestation: Direct cause . https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/Deforestation/deforestation_update3.php [5 October March 2018].

Neary, D. G., Ice, G. G., & Jackson, C. R. (2009). Linkages between forest soils and water quality and quantity. Forest Ecology and Management, 258 , 2269–2281.

Nina, C. (2019). Deforestation and 5G – it’s closer to home than we might think! . Retrieved from https://ninanco.com/food/sustainable-local/deforestation-5g-closer-home-might-think/ on March 14, 2019.

Nikoloyuk, J., Burns, T. R., & de Man, R. (2010). The promise and limitations of partnered governance: The case of sustainable palm oil. Corporate Governance, 10 (1), 59–72.

NRE. (2016). Kawasan Berhutan di Malaysia (1990–2014) . Retrieved from http://www.nre.gov.my/ms-my/Hutan/Pages/Statistik_Hutan.aspx

Patrick, T. (2017). Malaysia bracing for EU ban on palm oil . Retrieved from http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2017/10/30/malaysia-bracing-for-eu-ban-on-palm-oil/

Pellicani, R., Van Westen, C. J., & Spilotro, G. (2013). Assessing landslide exposure in areas with limited landslide information. Landslides, 11 (3), 463–480.

Pongratz, J., Reick, C. H., Raddatz, T., & Claussen, M. (2010). Biogeophysical versus biogeochemical climate response to historical anthropogenic land. Geophysical Research Letters, 37 , L08702. https://doi.org/10.1029/2010gl043010 .

Pokorný, J., Brom, J., Cermák, J., & Hesslerová, P. (2010). Solar energy dissipation and temperature control by water and plants. International Journal of Water, 5 , 311–336.

Radachowsky, J. (2018). Honduras leads central American response to climate change. In The National Geographic , November 13, 2018. Retrieved from https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2018/11/13/honduras-leads-central-american-response-to-climate-change/ on November 15, 2018.

Reboredo, F. (2013). Socio-economic, environmental, and governance impacts of illegal logging. Environment Systems and Decisions, 33 (2), 295–304.

Sankar, C., Anil, P. C., & Amruth, M. (2000). Criteria and indicators for sustainable plantation forestry in India (72 p). Bogor: Center for International Forestry Research.

Sheil, D., Casson, A., Meijaard, E., Van Nordwijk, M., Gaskell, J., Sunderland-Groves, J., Wertz, K., & Kanninen, M. (2009). The impacts and opportunities of oil palm in Southeast Asia: What do we know and what do we need to know? (Occasional paper no. 51). Bogor: CIFOR.

Shoumatoff, A. (2017). The wasting of Borneo: Dispatches from a vanishing world . Boston: Beacon Press.

Sinha, S. K., & Swaminathan, M. S. (1991). Deforestation, climate change and sustainable nutrition security: A case study of India. In Tropical forests and climate (pp. 201–209). Dordrecht: Springer.

Chapter   Google Scholar  

SMART (Malaysia). (2017). Retrieved November 04, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_(Malaysia )

Sonter, L. J., Ali, H. S., & Watson, J. E. M. (2018). Mining and biodiversity: Key issues and research needs in conservation science. The Royal Society, 285 (1892), 20181926. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2018.1926 . PMC 6283941. PMID 30518573.

Stanturf, J. A. (2005). What is forest restoration? “Restoration of boreal and temperate forests.” (pp. 3–11). Boca Raton: CRC Press. http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/ja/ja_stanturf022.pdf .

Sundram, K. (2017). Malaysian palm oil industry: Our stand on the Nutella Ferrero report and misinformation about palm oil and cancer . Retrieved from http://mpoc.org.my/Malaysian_Palm_Oil_Industry;_Our_Stand_On_The__Nutella_Ferrero_Report_and__Misinformation_about_Palm_Oil_and_Cancer.aspx

Syktus, J. I., & McAlpine, C. A. (2016). More than carbon sequestration: Biophysical climate benefits of restored savanna woodlands. Scientific Reports, 6 , 29194.

Tegnäs, B., & Svedén, E. (2002). Palm oil: Where does it come from and where does it go? WWF Sweden.

Tan, P. Y., Wang, J., & Sia, A. (2013). Perspectives on five decades of the urban greening of Singapore. Cities, 32 , 24–32.

Tangang, F. T., Juneng, L., Salimun, E., Sei, K. M., Le, L. J., & Muhamad, H. (2012). Climate change and variability over Malaysia. SainsMalaysiana, 41 (11), 1355–1366.

Transportenvironment.org (2019) EU classifies palm oil diesel as unsustainable but fails to cut its subsidised use and associated deforestation. Retrieved from https://www.transportenvironment.org/press/eu-classifies-palm-oil-dieselunsustainable-fails-cut-its-subsidised-use-and-associated on February 16, 2019.

Tse, P. K. (2011). The mineral industry of Malaysia , vol. 17 (pp. 1–8). U.S. geological survey minerals yearbook. https://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/country/2011/myb3-2011-my.pdf (12/6/2018).

Turner, I. M. (1996). Species loss in fragments of tropical rain forest: A review of the evidence. Journal of Applied Ecology, 33 (2), 200–209.

UNFCC. (2001). Decision 11/CP.7. Land use, land-use change and forestry . Retrieved November 04, 2017, from https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/11cp7.pdf

UNFCCC. (2010). Glossary of climate change acronyms .

Van Kooten, G.C., & Bulte, E.H. (2000). The economics of nature: Managing biological assets, Blackwells.

Vasantha, K. S., & Bhagavanulu, D. V. S. (2008). Effect of deforestation on landslides in Nilgiris district—A case study. Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 36 (1), 105–108.

Victor, P. (2017, September 23). Deforestation – A modern-day plague in Southeast Asia . https://theaseanpost.com/article/deforestation-modern-day-plague-southeast-asia

Vijay, V., Pimm, S. L., Jenkins, C. N., & Smith, S. J. (2016). The impacts of oil palm on recent deforestation and biodiversity loss. PLoS One, 11 (7), e0159668. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0159668 .

Whitmore, T. C., & Sayer, J. A. (1992). Tropical deforestation and species extinction . London: Chapman & Hall.

Wicke, B., Sikkema, R., Dornburg, V., & Faaij, A. (2011). Exploring land use changes and the role of palm oil production in Indonesia and Malaysia. Land Use Policy, 28 (1), 193–206.

Wikipedia. (2018). Definition of reforestation . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reforestation

Wilcove, D. S., & Koh, L. P. (2010). Addressing the threats to biodiversity from oil-palm agriculture. Biodiversity and Conservation, 19 , 999–1007.

WWF. (2017). Forests . Retrieved November 2, from http://www.wwf.org.my/about_wwf/what_we_do/forests_main/

Yong, C., Saccess, N., & Jkoasm, N. (2014). Deforestation drivers and human rights in Malaysia. A national overview and two sub-regional case studies. International Workshop on Deforestation Drivers and the Rights of Forest Peoples, held in Palangka Raya, Indonesia, March 9–14, 2014.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Faculty of Engineering Sciences, Bright Star University, El-brega, Libya

Abdelnaser Omran

Dres. Schwarz-Herion KG Detective Agency, Ettlingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Odile Schwarz-Herion

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Abdelnaser Omran .

Editor information

Editors and affiliations, rights and permissions.

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Cite this chapter.

Omran, A., Schwarz-Herion, O. (2020). Deforestation in Malaysia: The Current Practice and the Way Forward. In: Omran, A., Schwarz-Herion, O. (eds) Sustaining our Environment for Better Future. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7158-5_11

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-7158-5_11

Published : 06 August 2019

Publisher Name : Springer, Singapore

Print ISBN : 978-981-13-7157-8

Online ISBN : 978-981-13-7158-5

eBook Packages : Earth and Environmental Science Earth and Environmental Science (R0)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Change of Forest Land Use Based on Conservation Policy and Practice: A Case Study in Danum Valley, Malaysia

PLANNING MALAYSIA

Southeast Asia’s forest and green areas are undergoing a fast and substantial experienced sudden change, depending on complex area management issues resulting in deforestation, including Danum Valley, Sabah, Malaysia. The study purposely to determine the land-use pattern at Danum Valley through a geospatial approach. GIS data was collected from government official departments such as the Sabah Forest Department and Urban and Regional Planning Sabah Department. Land-use changes analysis, namely Relative land use percentages and matrix analysis used to understand the changing pattern and current scenario of land use activity at Danum Valley. Preliminary findings indicate a change of forest land use from Class 2 Commercial Forest Reserve into Class 1 Protected Forest Reserve during the three times series within an area of influence near Danum Valley.

Related Papers

Louis R Iverson

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

Waidi Sinun

firuz ramli

Aisyah Abdullah

Deforestation analysis in Selangor, Malaysia between 1989 and 2011. This study was conducted to map forest cover and detect forest change in Selangor using two types of the best satellite imageries available, namely, Landsat 4 TM and SPOT 5 representing the years 1989 and 2011 respectively. Both imageries had been georeferenced and geometrically corrected using ERDAS Imagine version 9.1. Supervised classification was performed to distinguish three types of forest cover, namely, forest land, peat swamp and mangrove. The results showed that forest land and peat swamp decreased 2.5% (4317 ha) and 12.7% (12,313 ha) respectively while the mangrove area increased 0.68% (210 ha) in 2011 compared with 1989. Total area for these three types of forest decreased by only 5.47% during this period, i.e. from 300,271 ha in 1989 to 283,850 ha in 2011. Expansion of mangrove in Selangor could be related to conservation practices in order to protect the mangrove ecosystem and reducing coastal erosion. Decreasing forest land and peat swamp cover could be related to agriculture intensification, development of new townships and expansion of infrastructure in Selangor. These results could be used to further investigate the greenhouse gas contribution and carbon stock associated with deforestation in Selangor.

phouthasone khouangvichit

Landscape and Urban Planning

Nobukazu Nakagoshi

Adnan A Hezri

Forest Ecology and Management

Geoplanning: Journal of Geomatics and Planning

Noordini Che Man

Urbanization and urban land-use transition have a competitive environment to ensure and provide good facilities for citizen benefit. The landscape patterns resulting from urbanization effect processes at local, regional, and global scales. Quantifying the spatiotemporal pattern of urbanization is important for understanding its ecological impacts and can provide basic information for appropriate decision-making. The growth of urbanization in Mukim Pengerang, Johor, has undergone rapid changes in agriculture, settlements, townships and various activities. The changes of land use take place in Mukim Pengerang due to the rapid economic development, especially in industrializations which are Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development (RAPID) project and Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex (PIPC). The industrialization boosts the growth in land property and commercial which progressing in rapid development since the year 2012, in resulting whether it can give good, bad or both ...

RELATED PAPERS

Proceedings of the American Mathematical Society

Bernard Pinchuk

Proceedings of The 9'th Colloquium on the Qualitative Theory of Differential Equations (June 28--July 1, 2011, Szeged, Hungary) edited by: László Hatvani, Tibor Krisztin and Róbert Vajda

Istvan Farago

The Lancet Neurology

luca munari

Cogent Business & Management

Azanizawati Ma’aram

Danilo José Viana da Silva

La Ley Union Europea

CLARA ISABEL CORDERO ALVAREZ

Amadou Gaye

Nicholas Christie-blick

Journal for Healthcare Quality

Stephanie Stock

JURNAL PRODUKTIVITAS

Fita Kurniasari

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics

Dr Skandar Taj

Archive for Rational Mechanics and Analysis

Alberto Bressan

Coastal Engineering 2002 - Solving Coastal Conundrums - Proceedings of the 28th International Conference

Hessel Voortman

Michel Imbert

Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Research

hassan Reza amini

Journal of Materials Science

Josef Jančář

Fatima Sarasola

EPJ Web of Conferences

carolina berucci

Megan Selbst

arXiv (Cornell University)

Doried Ghader

SSRN Electronic Journal

guddu kumar

Quality in Sport

Karolina Krupa-Kotara

4th International Conference on Machine Learning, IoT and Big Data (ICMIB)

Mahtab Uddin

Journal of Pharmacological and Toxicological Methods

Alicia Mattiazzi

Family Medicine and Community Health

Ronald O'Donnell

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Surprise' Malaysian flood highlights climate crisis - how can we reduce the risk?

120,000 people were displaced by recent severe flooding across Malaysia. Image:  Reuters/Hasnoor Hussain

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Michael Taylor

.chakra .wef-9dduvl{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-9dduvl{font-size:1.125rem;}} Explore and monitor how .chakra .wef-15eoq1r{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;color:#F7DB5E;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-15eoq1r{font-size:1.125rem;}} Forests is affecting economies, industries and global issues

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:.

• Recent heavy floods in Malaysia caused nearly $1.5 billion in widespread destruction.
• The loss of primary forests in Malaysia for crops like palm oil may be contributing to worsening flooding, analysts say.
• An increasing number of areas, previously believed to be immune, are now being affected by floods.
• Green groups are calling on the government to boost climate action and limit deforestation.

The damaged furniture and mud-caked walls left by floodwaters have now been replaced or cleaned in Elizabeth Chong's family home, but lost forever are old photos and documents that gave a precious glimpse into her ancestors' lives.

On the street in Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur where Chong's family have lived for almost a century residents have coped with regular flooding for decades - but nothing prepared them for the devastation caused by rising waters late last year.

Chong, who lives in a two-storey house with her disabled aunt and retired mother, was among more than 120,000 people displaced by heavy rains and severe flooding in mid-December and early January across Malaysia.

"We knew that it was raining constantly and we expected a flood - but not to that extent," the 22-year-old told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

"The doors burst open. Water came in like crazy. All of a sudden it was chest high," said Chong, an administrator for a pharmaceutical company and a part-time student.

Disasters in 2021 from extreme weather and natural phenomenon such as earthquakes resulted in a global economic loss of $270 billion, according to a report last month by the Swiss Re Institute.

Floods alone accounted for 31% of those losses, it noted.

Like many Southeast Asian nations, Malaysia suffers regular flooding during its annual monsoon season but such widespread destruction rarely occurs in the richest states, including the capital and neighbouring Selangor.

Urban areas across the region - already struggling to cope with booming populations, rapid urbanisation and crumbling infrastructure - now face heightened threats from climate change-driven storms, heatwaves, floods and forest fires.

Malaysia's recent floods - some in areas once considered immune to such damage - caused nearly $1.5 billion in losses and were described by government officials as a "once-every-100-years" weather event.

But victims say the country's response to the floods was often slow and inadequate, and green groups are now calling on the government to introduce laws to cut climate changing emissions and boost emergency response and adaptation efforts.

"Floods occur every year somewhere, at some time in the country," said Salleh Mohd Nor, a former president and senior advisor at the Malaysian Nature Society.

"To say that this (flood) is one-in-100-years is something I doubt ... with climate change the rains will be more frequent and torrential," he added.

Waiting for rescue

The last time deep floodwaters entered Chong's terraced house - which sits near a river and in the shadow of a huge mall and fancy hotels - was in 2000. One of her earliest memories is of falling into floodwaters as an infant.

Renovations to the house over the years have included adding an additional floor, raising the structure by 2 feet (0.6 metres), and installing a flood barrier.

Authorities also completed construction of a key drainage and road tunnel in 2007, to guard against flash floods in the capital and help ease traffic congestion.

But after more than three days of near-constant rain in late December, floodwaters rose in about three hours from a trickle in Chong's home to touching the ceiling of the ground floor.

She and her family were forced to seek safety on the dry upper floor where, in darkness after the electricity was cut, she began frantically calling emergency services on her mobile phone. Nobody answered.

As trapped neighbours shouted questions and instructions to each other through windows, Chong phoned her local fire station and was told to call the national government helpline.

A quick Google search showed that it only operated from 9 am to 6 pm, she said.

Fire crews eventually used a boat to rescue Chong's family from the balcony, dropping them off on higher ground - and in the rain - without additional help, she added.

They temporarily moved in with family that lived elsewhere in the city, and the next day she returned home with her mother to salvage some belongings.

"This house had a lot of photos," Chong said. "Historical, valued things from my grandparent's time were all ruined."

Climate change poses an urgent threat demanding decisive action. Communities around the world are already experiencing increased climate impacts, from droughts to floods to rising seas. The World Economic Forum's Global Risks Report continues to rank these environmental threats at the top of the list.

To limit global temperature rise to well below 2°C and as close as possible to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, it is essential that businesses, policy-makers, and civil society advance comprehensive near- and long-term climate actions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The World Economic Forum's Climate Initiative supports the scaling and acceleration of global climate action through public and private-sector collaboration. The Initiative works across several workstreams to develop and implement inclusive and ambitious solutions.

This includes the Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, a global network of business leaders from various industries developing cost-effective solutions to transitioning to a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. CEOs use their position and influence with policy-makers and corporate partners to accelerate the transition and realize the economic benefits of delivering a safer climate.

Contact us to get involved.

Vanished forests

Malaysia was once entirely covered in trees but nearly half have now vanished, according to green group WWF.

The country has lost nearly a fifth of its primary forest since 2002, though deforestation rates have fallen in recent years, according to monitoring service Global Forest Watch (GFW).

Analysts say forest losses may be contributing to the worsening floods, with many of the hardest-hit states also showing the highest deforestation rates, according to GFW data.

As news reports emerged of rivers and flooded areas awash with logs, opposition politicians called on the government of Pahang state, east of Kuala Lumpur, to check on illegal and uncontrolled logging.

Damien Thanam Divean, vice president of non-governmental organisation PEKA Malaysia, said clear-cutting of forests, to plant crops such as palm oil and durian fruit, had reduced the ability of land to absorb water, worsening floods.

He called for a change in the national constitution to put forest management under federal control, with funds allocated to states to promote conservation efforts.

Malaysia's Environment Ministry and Prime Minister's Office did not respond to a request for comment.

Still, it is difficult to prove that deforestation upstream caused any specific flooding event, said John-Rob Pool, the implementation manager for Cities4Forests, led by the World Resources Institute, a U.S.-based think-tank.

During heavy rains, however, forests and fallen vegetation slow runoff, allowing more water to enter the soil and reducing the amount flowing downstream.

That means, "restoring forests is an absolute no-regret strategy" whether for biodiversity protection or lowering flood risk, Pool said.

Typically, seasonal floods happen more along the eastern coast of the Malaysian peninsula, said Renard Siew, a climate change advisor at think-tank the Centre for Governance and Political Studies - so the floods in December came as a shock to many urban residents.

They "never thought the time would come when they would actually have to evacuate from their homes for safety," he said. "That took them by surprise."

Climate change played a role in the severity of the rains and floods, he said, but other factors also contributed to the damage, from garbage-clogged city drains to construction on formerly green areas.

He urged Malaysia's government to better protect forests and mangroves, plant more urban trees and introduce a climate change act to help ministries and authorities work better together.

"We saw in December that things were not as coordinated as they should be," he said.

Have you read?

Flooding: how can vulnerable regions build resilience, flooding is predicted to displace 50 million people a year by 2100. what's being done, these floating homes could protect people from flooding as sea levels rise, slow recovery.

Kuala Lumpur resident Chong's salary barely covers the household bills and her flood-hit family received no clean-up or financial help from the federal government, she said.

But local charities, non-government organisations and others stepped in to help - including Chong's employer which set up a fund to replace damaged items while friends chipped in with plates, cups and a rice cooker.

The house is now clean of mud but still needs major repairs on the electrics and toilets - and Chong's wheelchair-bound aunt now lives in temporary accommodation provided by a non-government organisation.

Chong blames the loss of trees - and a lack of investment in flood prevention infrastructure - for her family's losses.

"One of the reasons why it floods so much is because they cut down too many trees or burn down trees to make way for developments and palm oil plantations," she said.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Related topics:

The agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;} weekly.

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

.chakra .wef-1dtnjt5{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;} More on Nature and Biodiversity .chakra .wef-17xejub{-webkit-flex:1;-ms-flex:1;flex:1;justify-self:stretch;-webkit-align-self:stretch;-ms-flex-item-align:stretch;align-self:stretch;} .chakra .wef-nr1rr4{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;white-space:normal;vertical-align:middle;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:0.75rem;border-radius:0.25rem;font-weight:700;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;line-height:1.2;-webkit-letter-spacing:1.25px;-moz-letter-spacing:1.25px;-ms-letter-spacing:1.25px;letter-spacing:1.25px;background:none;padding:0px;color:#B3B3B3;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;}@media screen and (min-width:37.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:0.875rem;}}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:1rem;}} See all

The planet’s outlook is in our hands. Which future will we incentivize?

Carlos Correa

April 22, 2024

Why recycling metal is an opportunity too good to waste

Nick Pickens and Julian Kettle

Earth Day 2024: These 4 innovators have big ideas for developing a sustainable plastics ecosystem

Simon Torkington

This Earth Day we consider the impact of climate change on human health

Shyam Bishen and Annika Green

Earth Day: We are almost certainly all eating plastics, says report, and other nature and climate stories you need to read this week

Johnny Wood

We’ve trapped nature action in a silo. An ecological mindset in leadership can help

Shruthi Vijayakumar and Matt Sykes

April 19, 2024

• Today's news
• Reviews and deals
• Climate change
• 2024 election
• Fall allergies
• Health news
• Mental health
• Sexual health
• Family health
• So mini ways
• Unapologetically
• Buying guides

Entertainment

• How to Watch
• My watchlist
• Stock market
• Biden economy
• Personal finance
• Stocks: most active
• Stocks: gainers
• Stocks: losers
• Trending tickers
• World indices
• US Treasury bonds
• Top mutual funds
• Highest open interest
• Highest implied volatility
• Currency converter
• Basic materials
• Communication services
• Consumer cyclical
• Consumer defensive
• Financial services
• Industrials
• Real estate
• Mutual funds
• Credit cards
• Credit card rates
• Balance transfer credit cards
• Business credit cards
• Cash back credit cards
• Rewards credit cards
• Travel credit cards
• Checking accounts
• Online checking accounts
• High-yield savings accounts
• Money market accounts
• Personal loans
• Student loans
• Car insurance
• Home buying
• Options pit
• Investment ideas
• Research reports
• Fantasy football
• Pro Pick 'Em
• College Pick 'Em
• Fantasy baseball
• Fantasy hockey
• Fantasy basketball
• Download the app
• Daily fantasy
• Scores and schedules
• GameChannel
• World Baseball Classic
• Premier League
• CONCACAF League
• Champions League
• Motorsports
• Horse racing
• Newsletters

New on Yahoo

• Privacy Dashboard

Deforestation pushes animals in Uganda forest to eat virus-laden bat poo

Animals in a Ugandan forest have been eating bat poo laden with viruses after tobacco farming wiped out their usual food source, a study has found.

A virus linked to Covid-19 was among the 27 identified in the poo eaten by chimpanzees, antelopes and monkeys.

Researchers say this finding sheds light on how new viruses might spread from wildlife to humans.

The animals were monitored in a study by the University of Stirling and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The six-year project was prompted when Dr Pawel Fedurek from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Scotland's University of Stirling observed wild chimpanzees in Budongo forest eating accumulated bat excrement, known as guano, from the hollow of a tree.

In July 2017, he set up cameras which captured other species also eating the poo.

According to the peer-reviewed study, which features in the Nature journal , guano is an "alternative source of crucial minerals" for the animals after the the palm trees they once consumed were "harvested to extinction".

The trees were used by locals in Budongo to dry tobacco leaves, which were then sold to international companies.

For just over six months, researchers collected samples of guano from the tree hollow the animals were filmed eating from.

How healthcare is helping regrow Madagascar's rainforest

The newlyweds who set up a chimpanzee sanctuary in Sierra Leone

In Congo, the 'lungs of humanity' are under threat

Lab analysis of the poo identified several viruses, including one related to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that caused the Covid-19 pandemic.

"It remains unknown whether the betacoronavirus found in the guano is transmissible to humans, but it does offer an example of how new infections might jump species barriers," a press release from the University of Stirling said.

"About a quarter the 27 viruses we identified were viruses of mammals - the rest were viruses of insects and other invertebrates," Prof Tony Goldberg, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in the US, told the BBC.

"All 27 viruses were new to science, so we don't know what effects they might have on humans or other animals. But one virus stood out because is was a relative of a virus everyone knows: SARS coronavirus 2."

Dr Pawel Fedurek, an expert in animal behaviour at the University of Stirling, said: "Our research illustrates how a subtle form of selective deforestation, ultimately driven by a global demand for tobacco, can expose wildlife and, by extension, humans to viruses residing in bat guano, increasing virus spillover risk.

"Studies like ours shed light on the triggers and pathways of both wildlife-to-wildlife and wildlife-to-human virus transmission, ultimately improving our abilities to prevent outbreaks and pandemics in the future."

The researchers hope their findings make it possible to intervene in the transmission of viruses between species and ultimately help to prevent future pandemics.

Recommended Stories

The latest on bird flu: what to know about how it's spread, vaccine plans and more.

Everything need to know about the spread of avian influenza, aka bird flu, in the U.S.

Less than half of nursing home residents are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines, study finds: Your guide to the latest virus news

Here’s your go-to guide with everything you need to know about COVID-19, including testing expanding to more airports, updated isolation guidelines and plans for a fall vaccine.

Some Amazon and Max cartoons may have been partially animated in North Korea

North Korean animators may have helped create popular cartoons for Amazon Prime Video, Max and other streaming services. Researchers allegedly discovered files on a North Korean internet server that included animations, written instructions and comments regarding the shows.

It's almost Mother's Day, and I'm a beauty editor. Here's what I'm — shhh— buying my 68-year-old mom

From Supergoop's award-winning tinted sunscreen to Vegamour's outstanding dry shampoo, the best beauty gifts are those she'll actually love and use

Based on the odds, here's what the top 10 picks of the NFL Draft will be

What would a mock draft look like using just betting odds?

Save up to $1,200 on a Jackery generator with these huge Earth Day deals

Whether you're looking for a lot of power or a little, you can save a bundle on a Jackery power solution thanks to this "Earth Day Extravanganza" sale.

Here’s when people think old age begins — and why experts think it’s starting later

People's definition of "old age" is older than it used to be, new research suggests.

How the new College Football Playoff format came to be and what it means for the sport's future

"The rich are getting richer, and the poor get poorer." A look inside the heated negotiations over the latest CFP deal, and the unstable landscape that lies ahead.

The 10 car brands most expensive to maintain over 10 years

Consumer Reports' ranking of the most- and least-expensive vehicles sounds a concerning alarm bell about a few European brands.

Tales of the Shire trailer shows what life as a regular Hobbit looks like

Weta Workshop and Private Division have released the first trailer for Tales of The Shite. You play as a Hobbit in this Lord of the Rings cozy life sim.

Stock market today: Stocks bounce back with Big Tech earnings in view

Big Techs are the highlight as hopes rest on this week's flood of earnings to reassure and reignite the market.

What we watched: Bluey’s joyful finales

Bluey closed out its third season with two episodes of joyful highs and weepy lows.

General Galactic emerges from stealth to make methane from carbon dioxide

It’s not an easy strategy to get right, but General Galactic, a stealthy new startup, hopes the approach will let it drive prices down for so-called e-fuels, which produce hydrocarbons from captured carbon dioxide, the company told TechCrunch exclusively. The company was born out of co-founder and CEO Halen Mattison’s time at SpaceX. Mattison urged SpaceX to tackle the problem, but it was too tangential to the company’s goals at the time, he said.

Chicago Bears' futility at the QB position defies probability

Chicago will attempt to end its run of positional failure by selecting Caleb Williams, the Bears next shot at finding the franchise's first great quarterback in the Super Bowl era.

Anker's Soundcore Space A40 wireless earbuds are back down to $49 right now

The Anker Soundcore Space A40 is our favorite budget pair of true wireless earbuds, and it's now on sale for a low of $49 on Amazon.

It's Earth Day. Here are 6 tips for keeping yourself — and the planet — healthy.

Swap out your laundry pods, say no to paper receipts and other eco-friendly ways to boost your health.

The bipartisan worry that is uniting Washington: Cheap Chinese goods

For all the differences between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, they share a worry about China flooding global markets with cheap goods.

Way-too-early 2024-25 fantasy basketball top-12 rankings: Victor Wembanyama climbs to the top

With the fantasy basketball season behind us and the NBA playoffs in full swing, Dan Titus takes what he learned from this past campaign and reveals his first crack at next season's draft rankings.

2025 Porsche Cayenne GTS adds power, sharpness, and bronze

After taking the year off, a new Cayenne GTS joins the revised Cayenne lineup with more power, sharper turn-in, lightweight options, and higher prices.

I'm a pro baker, and these are the 10 kitchen deals I'm most excited about today — save up to 55%

Chop-chop: Score a Ninja Creami for $149, a Lodge Dutch oven for $70 and a Henckels knife duo for $26.

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

Case Study: How Aggressively Should a Bank Pursue AI?

• Thomas H. Davenport
• George Westerman

A Malaysia-based CEO weighs the risks and potential benefits of turning a traditional bank into an AI-first institution.

Siti Rahman, the CEO of Malaysia-based NVF Bank, faces a pivotal decision. Her head of AI innovation, a recent recruit from Google, has a bold plan. It requires a substantial investment but aims to transform the traditional bank into an AI-first institution, substantially reducing head count and the number of branches. The bank’s CFO worries they are chasing the next hype cycle and cautions against valuing efficiency above all else. Siti must weigh the bank’s mixed history with AI, the resistance to losing the human touch in banking services, and the risks of falling behind in technology against the need for a prudent, incremental approach to innovation.

Two experts offer advice: Noemie Ellezam-Danielo, the chief digital and AI strategy at Société Générale, and Sastry Durvasula, the chief information and client services officer at TIAA.

Siti Rahman, the CEO of Malaysia-headquartered NVF Bank, hurried through the corridors of the university’s computer engineering department. She had directed her driver to the wrong building—thinking of her usual talent-recruitment appearances in the finance department—and now she was running late. As she approached the room, she could hear her head of AI innovation, Michael Lim, who had joined NVF from Google 18 months earlier, breaking the ice with the students. “You know, NVF used to stand for Never Very Fast,” he said to a few giggles. “But the bank is crawling into the 21st century.”

• Thomas H. Davenport is the President’s Distinguished Professor of Information Technology and Management at Babson College, a visiting scholar at the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy, and a senior adviser to Deloitte’s AI practice. He is a coauthor of All-in on AI: How Smart Companies Win Big with Artificial Intelligence (Harvard Business Review Press, 2023).
• George Westerman is a senior lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management and a coauthor of Leading Digital (HBR Press, 2014).

Partner Center