Face Of Climate Change In Langkawi

Earth day for 2013 is on Monday, 22nd April. The global theme for Earth day this year is: The Face of Climate Change.

The link to this video is here

Will the face of climate change be increased for our beloved island or the other way around?

While I do not have the answer for now, I wonder if we will face adverse climate condition here or will we affect the other parts of the planet?

Langkawi is struggling to save her own rainforest and now she is completely helpless in the current state of her remaining original habitat.

These recent photos were taken along the path of the new road which is now being built between Telaga Harbour and Mutiara Bay at Pantai Kok.

A "Rockblaster"

Development benefits the economic for the island. However, where do we draw the line between over developed and being sustainable? Langkawi is a preferred holiday destination because of her rainforest and the wildlife. I want to see genuine nature-loving tourists returning to Langkawi for her natural beauty and being respectful with her environment.

Multi-billionaire companies will tell the world that they will replant the trees after the development of a virgin rainforest. You and I know that replanting trees will never be the same as the original state. And yet, most of us accept the fact that the act of replanting trees is better than nothing. And yet, it is still not the same.

Rest in peace to those fallen trees .... and Happy Earth Day all!

Other interesting related links:

1. Land Agreement for Land Development At Burau Bay

LEASE AGREEMENT FOR LAND DEVELOPMENT AT BURAU BAY

WRITTEN BY LADA ON 28 MARCH 2012. IN CATEGORY NEWS

Langkawi, March 28: The Langkawi Development Authority (LADA) made a major announcement today to lease the land surrounding Burau Bay Resort to Syarikat Benua Mahsuri Sdn Bhd (a subsidiary of Tradewinds Corporation) for the development of a luxury hotel.

The land in the lease agreement is for 36.7 acres of LADA-owned land officially designated as H.S(D) 3/96 Lot 1718 in the Padang Mat Sirat district.The land was originally developed in 1991 by Syarikat Pernas OUE (Langkawi) Sdn Bhd, who built Burau Bay Resort. After the lease expired in 2000, LADA gave the management of the land and resort to Syarikat LADA-Eco Tourism for 10 years. The decision to lease the land to Syarikat Benua Mahsuri was actually made last year, but discussions to finalize the details of the development were only completed recently.

Syarikat Benua Mahsuri plans to build an upscale hotel with an eco-resort concept, complete with a high-end spa and top-notch luxury facilities. The project is expected to attract more affluent travelers to Langkawi and to increase per capita income for tourism. The hotel will also provide more than 400 new jobs.

Project development is in accordance with initiatives 4 and 5 of the Langkawi Tourism Blueprint, which targets the beautiful northwest region of the island for the development of more ultra-luxurious resorts to attract the wealthiest and biggest-spending world travellers to Langkawi within the next few years. Additionally, this development will help address the shortage of rooms in Langkawi during peak season.

The lease agreement was signed by LADA CEO, the Honourable Tan Sri Khalid Bin Ramli, and witnessed by Y.Bhg Dato’ Fauziah Bt Yaacob, Board Member and LADA Director. Signing for Syarikat Benua Mahsuri was Tradewinds Corporation CEO Mr Shaharul Farez Hassan and witnessed by Dato 'Aziz Bin Shahar, Corporate Advisor to the Al-Bukhary Group.

LAST UPDATED ON 16 OCTOBER 2012

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The Fate of One Thousand Young Trees

Wake up, Starwood! Your "babies" are now struggling to survive in this terrible hot weather and possibly in the suicidal mode.

The Mother Earth may be grateful in your quests to make the planet a greener place for the homosapiens to live in. However, She may not be pleased too. 

Why?

Bukit Hantu, Langkawi. Earth day on 22nd April 2011. 1000 saplings were planted on the dry open land by staffs the Starwood hotels and resorts. Wonderful efforts to recognise Earth Day!

But, what's next?

A recent check in Bukit Hantu revealed that the saplings planted were withering and the soil condition was hard dry. 

 Very dry soil

Leaves drying out. Can you see those tiny white spots next to the lake? Those are the flags

Another eye sore was those white flags with the drawings tied to tens of poles and tags standing among the saplings. It is cool to be flamboyant once in a while, however, who will clear all these white flags when they became rubbish later?

Bendera berkibar-kibar... a sign of 1Malaysia Boleh...

With the current dry spell, these young saplings are in desperate need of TLC (Tender Loving Care). When young trees are kept in polybags, there are usually well watered and fertilised in control environment ie. away from the direct sun exposure. During that period, these saplings became so comfortable that they developed root balls. When these saplings got to be planted on different grounds, they lacked the full capability of absorbing water from its surrounding soil. 

From a botanist's or a horticulturist's point of view, when saplings are in full sun, strict watering plan must be followed and not just leaving them to Mother Nature to do the rest. SOS needed for these young trees!

Four hundred young trees were planted on the same site almost two years ago for the World Environment Day. And yet, what happened to those young trees? Haven't we learned from the past?

Like most "greening" programs, it is sad to see so much funds wasted. 

Links:

1. Langkawi Gazette on Tree Planting In Langkawi

2. MNS Langkawi On World Environment Day 2009

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A Perfect Daily Ritual - Earth Day

Peeping through the window of my concrete wall

Where the sunlight creeps through the gap of the solid wall

Watching the greeneries and the daily perfect ritual for me

Would be greeting the trees of life that stand tall in front of me

These big trees may be our awe and admiration

However, even a small and shy plant like this also desires our attention

Do you think that we are the only ones that perform the perfect ritual?

Go see how a happy bird greets the day by flapping its wing to do its perfect ritual  

Standing amidst the rainforest,

It is a gentle reminder for us that no matter how big and smart we think we are, 

In fact, what a tiny wee speck of creatures crawling on Earth we are...

Do you think life is full of waste?

Yes, sometimes because we are the ones that produced that whole lot of waste

Go watch a dung beetle

Isn't it delightful to see it happily rolls the shit 

and helps to keep the surrounding neat?

Do you think our life is complex?

Yes, at times. 

Go stare and wonder at the web of life 

That interconnects with the entire network of our Earth's living force

Which one is more complex?

From this moment and till the day I die
I want to savour all these moments
Even if my spirit is soaring high in the sky
I still want to savour all these moments

HAPPY EARTH DAY today and everyday to my fellow readers and blog followers!

I love this bit taken from James Cameron's Avatar: An Activist Survival Guide written by Maria Wilhelm and Dirk Mathison:

"The armies of greed lay waste to the Earth and all its creatures. In our hunger for energy-for more and more-we've devastated our planet. We're neck-deep in festering industrial muck, in a trash heap of ever-expanding waste and decay. Overpopulation, overdevelopment, nuclear terrorism, environmental warfare, radiation leakage from power plants and waste dumps, toxic runoff, air pollution, deforestation, global warming, ozone depletion, loss of biodiversity through extinction... our once blue-green and beauteous Earth is now a terminal cesspool - an oozing wound cut deep into the face of the universe. Dollar for dollor (Ringgit for Ringgit), we've bought our extinction." - Avatar, An Activist Survival Guide book

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