Page 23 - Tropical Peat Swamp Forests of Sarawak FA
P. 23
To achieve this task, a Special Park Committee and Environmental School Clubs, co-ordinated Recovery of peat swamp forest at
was established, as required by Sarawak law, by the Natural Resource Environment Board, Maludam NP after logging
bringing together all the various stakeholders, have been established to provide the Maludam
to promote co-management. schools with a long-term support on environ- Before it obtained National Park status, the
mental education. Another activity with a long- Maludam peat swamp forest had been logged.
“The results were used term perspective, is the development of locally Commercial logging started as early as 1958, and
based eco-tourism.
went on until the late 1990’s. The park protects
to draft and complete a Socio-economic studies, including those on ish- a complete peat dome ecosystem and supports
several diferent peat swamp forest types. The
management plan, which aims eries, aimed at assessing to what extent the dif- distinction between forest types is not very clear
as the forest has undergone much disturbance.
ferent local populations depend on the natural
at maximizing the beneits resources of the park, and to what extent they Humans have lived in the park’s vicinity for a
supported the idea of protecting these resources.
for local communities while Also, an inventory was made of the non-timber very long time. The whole of the park has been
logged and silviculturally treated at least once.
forest products collected by local people from
minimizing the impact of the forests, and how the use of these products In order to estimate how loral biodiversity has
could be optimized without jeopardising the
recovered after logging, 9 plots were analysed.
activities on the park.” integrity of the ecosystems in the park. In the Four of these plots had been established in 1970
long term, the development of other economic
as regular yield plots, 5 additional plots were
activities must bring the solution, by generating established under the Ramin/Maludam projects
alternative sources of income. to gain additional information on the status of
Under the umbrella of the local communities the forest.
programme, many activities took place, like The major outcome of the hydrology and soil
community dialogues, education and aware- studies was that the boundaries of the park, as
ness campaigns, village cleanliness campaigns, it was gazetted in May 2000, would not encom- “What remains of the peat
and handicraft and homestay workshops. These pass the entire peat dome. On the east side of
participatory actions pave the way to strengthen the park, a very large part of the dome would swamp forest is
local support for the park in the future. There- remain outside the park. If this area would be Pitcher plant Nepehthes bicalcarata Hook. f., a
fore these actions need to have a long-term developed and drained, there would be no way peatswamp forest species. loristically still rich.”
perspective. One of the ways to achieve this, to stop draining the entire peat dome, which
is involving schools and their education pro- would corrupt and eventually destroy the park.
grammes. An Environmental Resource Centre Based on these results, the park was extended The proportion of canopy-gap and open or
with an area of 9,125 ha on the eastern bound- disturbed habitat has increased signiicantly
ary, to ensure the future integrity of the peat BOX III. Species richness in Maludam as a result of timber extraction. Well-known,
dome and its lora and fauna. Also based on the National Park commercially valuable species such as Gonys-
hydrology and soils studies, a bufer zone of 500 tulus bancanus (ramin telur - Thymelaeaceae),
m was proposed outside the park boundaries, More than 201 species of birds, 61 species Dryobalanops rappa (kapur paya - Dipterocar-
where drainage would not be allowed, to safe- of mammals, 6 species of amphibians, 11 paceae), Dactylocladus stenostachys (jongkong -
guard the peat dome from drainage when the species of reptiles, 28 species of fresh water Crypteroniaceae) and Shorea albida (alan bunga
peat zone outside the park would be developed ishes, and 218 species of plants and trees - Dipterocarpaceae) are not well represented.
into oil palm plantations (8,000 ha proposed). The ramin population is alarmingly low, with a
have been identiied in and around the park total of 21 ramin trees, 201 saplings and 357
The Maludam Project was concluded with a by various inventory teams. As during these seedlings recorded in nine 1-ha plots.
workshop in December 2004, where the com- inventories the Red banded Langur, lagship The park is now covered by less well-known
pleted management plan was presented. It species for the park, was hardly encoun- timber species such as Blumeodendron tokbrai
should be noted, however, that although this tered, a special programme was launched to and Neoscortechinia kingii (Euphorbiaceae),
workshop marked the end of the present project, monitor this rare and elusive species. This Diospyros evena (Ebenaceae), Lithocarpus
it should not be seen as an end, but rather as a dasystachyus (Fagaceae) and Nephelium main-
beginning. special inventory revealed that these precious gayi (Sapindaceae) in the drier areas. However,
animals are still present in fair numbers, and what remains of the peat swamp forest in the
on various occasions they could be captured Maludam area is loristically still rich. More
Fish from the forest rivers provides people with a on photo and video. than 80% of the species known from the peat
source of protein. swamp forests of Sarawak and Brunei have been
recorded here.
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22
22 23
was established, as required by Sarawak law, by the Natural Resource Environment Board, Maludam NP after logging
bringing together all the various stakeholders, have been established to provide the Maludam
to promote co-management. schools with a long-term support on environ- Before it obtained National Park status, the
mental education. Another activity with a long- Maludam peat swamp forest had been logged.
“The results were used term perspective, is the development of locally Commercial logging started as early as 1958, and
based eco-tourism.
went on until the late 1990’s. The park protects
to draft and complete a Socio-economic studies, including those on ish- a complete peat dome ecosystem and supports
several diferent peat swamp forest types. The
management plan, which aims eries, aimed at assessing to what extent the dif- distinction between forest types is not very clear
as the forest has undergone much disturbance.
ferent local populations depend on the natural
at maximizing the beneits resources of the park, and to what extent they Humans have lived in the park’s vicinity for a
supported the idea of protecting these resources.
for local communities while Also, an inventory was made of the non-timber very long time. The whole of the park has been
logged and silviculturally treated at least once.
forest products collected by local people from
minimizing the impact of the forests, and how the use of these products In order to estimate how loral biodiversity has
could be optimized without jeopardising the
recovered after logging, 9 plots were analysed.
activities on the park.” integrity of the ecosystems in the park. In the Four of these plots had been established in 1970
long term, the development of other economic
as regular yield plots, 5 additional plots were
activities must bring the solution, by generating established under the Ramin/Maludam projects
alternative sources of income. to gain additional information on the status of
Under the umbrella of the local communities the forest.
programme, many activities took place, like The major outcome of the hydrology and soil
community dialogues, education and aware- studies was that the boundaries of the park, as
ness campaigns, village cleanliness campaigns, it was gazetted in May 2000, would not encom- “What remains of the peat
and handicraft and homestay workshops. These pass the entire peat dome. On the east side of
participatory actions pave the way to strengthen the park, a very large part of the dome would swamp forest is
local support for the park in the future. There- remain outside the park. If this area would be Pitcher plant Nepehthes bicalcarata Hook. f., a
fore these actions need to have a long-term developed and drained, there would be no way peatswamp forest species. loristically still rich.”
perspective. One of the ways to achieve this, to stop draining the entire peat dome, which
is involving schools and their education pro- would corrupt and eventually destroy the park.
grammes. An Environmental Resource Centre Based on these results, the park was extended The proportion of canopy-gap and open or
with an area of 9,125 ha on the eastern bound- disturbed habitat has increased signiicantly
ary, to ensure the future integrity of the peat BOX III. Species richness in Maludam as a result of timber extraction. Well-known,
dome and its lora and fauna. Also based on the National Park commercially valuable species such as Gonys-
hydrology and soils studies, a bufer zone of 500 tulus bancanus (ramin telur - Thymelaeaceae),
m was proposed outside the park boundaries, More than 201 species of birds, 61 species Dryobalanops rappa (kapur paya - Dipterocar-
where drainage would not be allowed, to safe- of mammals, 6 species of amphibians, 11 paceae), Dactylocladus stenostachys (jongkong -
guard the peat dome from drainage when the species of reptiles, 28 species of fresh water Crypteroniaceae) and Shorea albida (alan bunga
peat zone outside the park would be developed ishes, and 218 species of plants and trees - Dipterocarpaceae) are not well represented.
into oil palm plantations (8,000 ha proposed). The ramin population is alarmingly low, with a
have been identiied in and around the park total of 21 ramin trees, 201 saplings and 357
The Maludam Project was concluded with a by various inventory teams. As during these seedlings recorded in nine 1-ha plots.
workshop in December 2004, where the com- inventories the Red banded Langur, lagship The park is now covered by less well-known
pleted management plan was presented. It species for the park, was hardly encoun- timber species such as Blumeodendron tokbrai
should be noted, however, that although this tered, a special programme was launched to and Neoscortechinia kingii (Euphorbiaceae),
workshop marked the end of the present project, monitor this rare and elusive species. This Diospyros evena (Ebenaceae), Lithocarpus
it should not be seen as an end, but rather as a dasystachyus (Fagaceae) and Nephelium main-
beginning. special inventory revealed that these precious gayi (Sapindaceae) in the drier areas. However,
animals are still present in fair numbers, and what remains of the peat swamp forest in the
on various occasions they could be captured Maludam area is loristically still rich. More
Fish from the forest rivers provides people with a on photo and video. than 80% of the species known from the peat
source of protein. swamp forests of Sarawak and Brunei have been
recorded here.
23
22
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