Malaysia Flashcards
Causes of deforestation in Malaysia
7
- Logging
- Commercial Farming
- Mineral extraction
- Settlement and population growth
- Subsistence farming
- Road Building
- Energy development
Logging
2
- World’s largest exporter of tropical wood since the 80’s.
- 80% of Borneo’s rainforest destroyed
Commercial farming
3
- one of the largest producer + exporter of palm oil in world
- during 1970s large areas of land converted to plantations
- plantation owners receive 10 year tax incentives - more land converted to plantations
Mineral extraction
3
- mining (mainly tin & smelting) is common in peninsular Malaysia
- rainforest cleared for mining & road construction
- drilling for oil & gas has started in Borneo
Road building
2
- roads are constructed to provide access to mining areas, new settlements & energy projects
- logging requires road construction to bring in machinery & take away timber
Settlement and population growth
2
- URBAN dwellers urged by gov in past to migrate to RURAL areas (transmigration)
- 1956-1980s 15k HA of rainforest felled for settlers - many then set up plantations
Energy development
4
- 2011- after 5 decades of delays the bakun dam, Sarawak started to generate electricity
- Bakun dam (205m) is Asia’s highest dam outside china
- more dams in future
- Bakun dam supplies energy for industrialised peninsular Malaysia
Subsistence farming Malaysia
6
1)tribal people practise this farming
2)traditionally, local people would hunt & grow some food crops in small pockets of cleared forest.
3)this type of farming is sustainable & small scale
4)one method of clearing land is slash and burn
5)use of fire to clear land, burning creates valuable nutrients that help plants grow.
6)these fires can grow out control, destroying large areas of forest
Impacts of deforestation in Malaysia
5
- Soil erosion
- Loss of biodiversity
- Contribution to climate change
- Economic development
- Social loss
Soil erosion
4
- in hilly areas of Penang Island & Kuala Lumpur city - urban dev. - widespread forest clearance
- led to severe soil erosion
- frequent landslides
- May 2011, following heavy rain, a landslide devastated an orphanage in Kuala Lumpur, killing 15 children
Loss of biodiversity
area that is important, 2 bps abt why it’s important
The Main Range is an upland region, stretching for 500km along the backbone of Peninsular Malaysia
This area is important cuz:
- +500 species
- still many undiscovered plants that could hv medicinal qualities that might provide cures 4 diseases here. If lost, would be bad
contribution to climate change
general - local, global. fact global
- at local scale - removal of trees reduces rates of evapotranspiration - drier climate + hotter temp.
- At global scale - the whole enhanced greenhouse effect thing
- deforestation in tropical regions accounts for 20% annual global GHG emissions
jobs, taxes, transport, manufacturing, NRG, exports
economic gains (short-term)
6
- Jobs from mining, farming and energy (directly - construction, farming) (indirectly - supply + support industries)
- Companies pay taxes to gov. can be used to improve public services, education and water supply
- Improved transport infrastructure opens up new areas for ind. dev. + tourism
- Products like oil palm and rubber provide new material for processing industries.
- Hydroelectric power provides cheap and plentiful energy. (e.g. Bakun Dam in Sarawak)
- Minerals such as gold and tin are very valuable. Oil and gas r extracted in Borneo
water, fires, farming, medicine, $, tourism
economic losses (longer-term)
6
- Pollution of water sources and an increasingly dry climate may result in water shortages.
- Fires can cause harmful pollution. They can burn out of control, destroying vast areas of valuable forest
- Rising temperatures devastate some forms of farming, like fruits and flowers.
- Plants that could bring huge medical benefits and high profits may become extinct
- Climate change could have economic costs as people have to adapt to living in a warmer world
- The number of tourists attracted by rainforest could decrease.
Social loss
10k members of Penan tribe used to live in Sarawak. Now only 200 live there, driven out because of deforestation
