Letter to the Editor: Halt Logging In The Terenggun Virgin Forest Reserve
LETTER TO THE EDITOR HALT LOGGING IN THE TERENGGUN VIRGIN FOREST RESERVE The Pahang Menteri Besar’s statement disavowing responsibility for logging in the Terenggun Virgin Forest Reserve (VFR) in Kuala Lipis defies logic and the principles of accountability and transparency. If, as the MB stated, no logging permits have been issued for the Terenggun VFR, then the tree-felling activities must necessarily be illegal, whether the logging is for the purpose of the timber industry or for road construction, as claimed in his statement dated 20th August 2016. Based on observable facts and basic civil engineering practices, there are no instances in which timber is utilised in modern-day road construction in Malaysia. It follows therefore that the trees were felled to clear the way for road construction and the timber became just another source of income. Either possibility is an alarming one, as neither logging nor road construction should be permitted in a forest reserve, especially one ...