KINABATANGAN: Saraya Corporation, an environmentally conscious Japanese organisation, will be funding the 33.35-acre Lower Kinabatangan Elephant Food Corridor project here to the tune of RM1 million for the next five years.
State Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Seri Christina Liew said this when launching the project at Kg Bilit, Monday, where she unveiled a napier grass planting site in the village.
The ambitious project aims to plant the grass along the riverbanks of Kinabatangan to create an alternative food source for Bornean elephants, thereby guiding their movements away from human settlements and agricultural areas.
Liew said the government has entrusted the Responsible Elephant Conservation Trust (Respect) to take a lead role in creating an elephant food corridor in Kinabatangan, starting at Kg Bilit. Wildlife conservationist Alexander Yee Kok Tsen is the Chairman of Respect.
“The partnership between Respect and Saraya Corporation exemplifies the power of collaboration in addressing complex conservation challenges.
“Saraya’s vision of fostering environmental sustainability aligns perfectly with Sabah’s goal of ensuring that our natural treasures are preserved for future generations.
“This partnership underscores Sabah’s unwavering commitment to promoting sustainable economic growth while protecting its unique biodiversity,” she said.
Liew reiterated that the Government is fully committed to providing the necessary support to ensure the success of this project.
She also commended the communities of Kg Bilit and the surrounding areas for their active involvement in these efforts. Seven planters have been employed by Respect for the project.
On the rationale to create an elephant food corridor, she noted that the range of movement of the elephants in Kinabatangan is like a long corridor as they move up and down the river, between Batu Putih and Kg Abai with Kg Bilit roughly in the middle.
“As far as food is concerned, studies have shown that elephants feed on many kinds of plants but their favourites are oil palms and grasses. When we go by boat along the Kinabatangan River, you will notice that almost all the vegetation in Kinabatangan is either forest or oil palm.
“Grasslands now are actually very, very small. Where the river banks have no trees, we plan to plant and maintain grasses,” Liew said, adding that the planting of wild fig trees, which elephants and other wildlife animals love, will also be considered.
Dismissing talk that planting grass would result in more elephants and more problems managing them, she said the reality is that elephants in Kinabatangan are already breeding very well. “Just look at all the babies. Every day an elephant is feeding on grass means a day not spent feeding on oil palm.”
The Sabah Wildlife Department (JHL) is the government agency assigned to collaborate with Respect towards the successful implementation of this initiation.
