I AM a Malaysian citizen who tries hard to protect the environment. I am not alone. Numerous individuals, NGOs and the private sector are working tirelessly in various capacities, towards the betterment of our environment.
Despite all our efforts, there are still many issues which need to be resolved to ensure that our environment is conserved. This can only happen through intervention from the top €“ the Natural Resources and Environment Minister.
Since I am not the minister, I can only dream. But if I were the minister, the following are the top 10 things (in no particular order) that I would do.
1. Revenue sharing between federal and state governments: I will convince the Cabinet that revenue sharing between federal and state governments must be restructured if the natural resources and the environment of the country are to be protected sustainably.
The present scheme in which most of the revenue generated goes to the federal government forces state governments to exploit natural resources (forest, minerals, land) to fill up their coffers, and this probably represents the greatest threat to the environment.
There is no incentive for state governments to protect their forests, even for tourism, because tourism-related receipts such as service and sales tax go to the federal government.
State governments are at the mercy of the federal government for development grants and financial assistance.
I will formulate a scheme to give state governments a better slice of government revenue, and give them greater responsibility for caring for the environment.
2. Environmental Quality Council: I will revamp the Environmental Quality Council (EQC). The EQC has been in existence since the coming into force of the Environmental Quality Act 1974, but it has not made any impact on environmental protection and management.
It has not played a leading role in the development and formulation of environmental policies and strategies.
I will ensure the EQC does what it is required to do, namely, to advise me. I expect advice at a policy and strategic level, advice on the direction to move forward, advice on how DOE is doing, and advice on what we are doing wrong.
A major priority is a total review of the National Environmental Policy. If this calls for a revamp of the council, I will do it.
3. More visible minister: I will be more visible, more vocal and strive to be the face of the country’s environmental management. This sector has a visibility problem. All the key government people keep a low profile.
Forget the notion of “we do our work quietly”. If the public knows Karam Singh Walia better than they know me, we have a problem. The country needs an icon and I intend to be that icon.
4. Better support for NGOs: I will provide NGOs with greater moral and financial support. Many of the effective environmental programmes in the country, particularly those at community level, have been implemented and funded by NGOs.
Several environmental NGOs are doing excellent work in Malaysia and by working closely with them, I believe the Government’s job would be easier.
5. National Transportation Policy: I will see to it that the National Transportation Policy is jointly formulated by three ministries - my ministry, Transport Ministry, and Energy, Water and Communications Ministry.
Transportation has such great impact on the environment and energy use that it cannot be left to one ministry to decide. We want to be in the driver’s seat together.
Transportation impacts the environment in so many ways - emissions, land use, noise, and energy use. Sustainable transport is fundamental to ensuring environmental quality and reducing demand for energy.
6. National Biological Diversity Policy: I will reformulate the National Biological Diversity Policy. The present policy is outdated, so obscure that almost no one outside my ministry knows about it, sets no targets, provides vague directions and was formulated without serious stakeholder engagement.
I will ensure that the new National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan that my ministry will formulate will holistically address all the requirements of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). This is the leading global agreement on how countries should manage their biological resources.
We will set realistic targets, develop a holistic biodiversity planning framework with action plans, budget and time-frame that will help us achieve our targets.
7. Environmental impact of development plans: I will examine the environmental impact of the 9th Malaysia Plan (9MP) and all other subsequent national plans.
For too long, the country has been focusing on the “small picture”, such as examining the environmental impact of projects and discharges from factories. It is time we started looking at how major policies, programmes and plans are affecting the environment.
I will push for the adoption of a policy that requires all ministries to be responsible for environmental management within their area of jurisdiction.
8. Biofuel: I will convince my colleagues in the energy and plantation sectors to review the national strategy on biofuel. Although the original intentions were to produce more environment-friendly fuel and to rely less on fossil fuels, there is now an increasing body of scientific knowledge that there are adverse consequences.
Demand for palm oil and other biofuels is now threatening forest land and many important wildlife species, and pushing food prices up.
Given the volume of scientific and economic analysis that is emerging, it is a matter of time before developed countries change their biofuel policies, thus reducing demand for palm-oil based biofuels. We need to rethink our strategy now.
9. Water Resource Management: Too many ministries and agencies are involved in the management of our water resources €“ KTAK, NRE, SPAN, JPS, MOA, DOE, PUAS, LUAS, various state agencies and local councils. If you look at our rivers, you know we have not got it right.
Overlapping and conflicting jurisdictions, gaps, responsibilities without authority, lack of human capacity and the vagaries of the state-federal scope of jurisdiction all add to the problem.
I will push for a re-examination of these shortcomings, streamline the role of the various agencies, and push for greater responsibility of state governments in water resource management.
10. Environmental awareness and education: I will ask the Prime Minister to insist that all ministries, departments, statutory and non-statutory agencies, and Members of Parliament, be aware of environmental policies adopted in the country.
I will work with the Education Minister to infuse greater environmental understanding into the school curriculum. We need to nurture teachers who are environmentally-sensitive. In short, we need an environmental education policy, and we need to consistently implement that policy.
I will set up a Performance Monitoring Unit that reports directly to me, with a brief to monitor performance, identify where actions are slow, and where laws are not being enforced.
We cannot live without our environment to support us and it deserves better treatment than we are currently giving it. We have a big job to do and the sooner we put more resources and effort into it, the better our future.
Dr G. Balamurugan
Policy Research Unit
ERE Consulting Group
Subang Jaya, Selangor
-Article sourced from here-
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