KUCHING: Villagers of Kampung Matang Lot, located at the foot of the Serapi Range, are at a loss as to what to do about illegal logging activities said to be rampant up the mountain.
A complaint had beenlodged with the authority concerned, but according to some of the villagers, the activities are getting worse in the last five months.
Yesterday, reporters of The Borneo Post were brought to the purported sites, about 1.5km to 3km walk uphill, by two of the villagers.
The visit was eye-opening.
There are signs of rampanttree felling activities in the area visited, said to be designated State forest reserve.
“At first, we thought that it was other villagers chopping down trees for firewood or to repair their wooden houses, but when the tree felling appeared large scale, we knew something was wrong,” saidone of the villagers who asked to speak on anonymity.
According to him, the modus operandi involvedcutting the trees halfway using chainsaws and then let these trees fall on their own momentum, while the task of bringing the logs downhill was done with the aid of “rollers” made of smaller round timbers laid down on man-made paths.
The villager said the fourtree species frequently cut down by these illegal loggers were ‘belian’, ‘cengal’, ‘meranti’ and ‘selangan batu’, all highly sought after timbers capable of commanding high prices in the market, mainly in the furniture and construction industries.
“What worries me is the fact that the activities willlead to disturbance of the natural eco system.
If noactions are taken to address this problem, we will see landslides and the degradation of the forest cover,” he said, adding thatit was his hope that the authorities would act fast before villagers living below the mountain takethe brunt of nature’s destruction on the mountain sides.
Another resident who also wished to remain anonymous said lorries ranging from the five to 10 tonners would arrive to carry the logs away.
“There was a time when a 10-ton container was seen parked at the location with some of their workers loading the goods.
“I believe that these activities were being carried out by a local company with assistance of someone familiar with this area,” he said.
When asked why the villagers did not make anattempt to confront the culprits while they were in action, he said they did not dare do that because they believed that the loggers had gangsters working for them.
“We are afraid that our family members would be harmed by this group ofpeople. So, the only thing we dare do is by getting the media to zoom in on the activities,” he said.
He also hoped that the Sarawak ForestryCorporation could appoint an honorary ranger to assist the villagers to watch over the forest reserve.
“I was informed that a total of three Honorary Rangers could be appointed in a parliament constituency.
Thus, maybe for the Petra Jaya constituency, we can have at least one Honorary Ranger,” he said.
At one point during the interview, sounds of trees falling down could be heard, clearly indicating the high level of danger found in an area frequented not only by villagers foraging for food and game but also by hikers and mountain biking enthusiasts looking for healthy challenge.
Sarawak Forestry director Datu Len Talif Salleh, when asked to comment on the claims, said a recent aerial survey using a helicopter did not show any sign of illegal logging in the area adjacent to Kampung Matang Lot.
However, he added, if it is true that there were illegal logging activities in the area, after carrying out aninvestigation, SFC would take immediate actions to address the matter.
“We carry out investigations based on all reports we receive.
Thereare times (the reports) are with basis and sometimes they are not,” he said, adding that the corporation wasvery serious in eradicating illegal activities in the state’s forests.