By Nur Ashikin Louis
MIRI, Sept 12: A group of researchers’ scientific expedition to Long Mekaba in Ulu Baram is hoped to be beneficial not only for research purposes but also to contribute to the local communities’ wellbeing and enhance the flora and fauna conservation in the area.
Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the scientific expedition is not just about finding new species but also how to apply the results and data collected to good use to achieve more significant scientific and conservation goals.
“Our forests contain rich flora and fauna, many of which are endemic to Borneo. The local communities have lived intimately with the biodiversity and learned to use the plants for various purposes, be it for food, medicine, and shelter.
“We need more R&D (research and development) to unlock their potential and commercialise their usage in pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries,” he said when launching the 9th Heart of Borneo (HoB) Gerenai-Long Mekaba Scientific Expedition 2022 dinner held at Imperial Hotel here earlier tonight.
The Gerenai-Long Mekaba expedition is the ninth expedition in Sarawak under the HoB Initiative, a conservation agreement between Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, which covers 240,000 km2 of ecologically interconnected rainforest on the island of Borneo.
For Sarawak, the State government has identified approximately 2.7 million hectares for HoB, constituting 21 per cent of Sarawak’s total land mass.
The eight HoB expeditions which have been carried out in Sarawak were the Lanjak Entimau Scientific Expedition in 2008, Paya Maga Scientific Expedition in 2010, Ulu Mentawai Scientific Expedition in 2012, Upper Baleh Scientific Expedition in 2015, Long Banga Scientific Expedition in 2016, Tama Abu Scientific Expedition in 2017, Kelingkang Range in 2019 and Gunung Pueh Scientific Expedition in 2020.
At the same time, Sarawak Forest Department director Datu Hamden Mohammad said this year’s expedition takes six to seven hours journey by logging road from Miri to Long Mekaba.
Long Mekaba, he said, is part of the Gerenai Forest Management Unit (FMU), situated at Batang Baram-Sungai Silat area in Miri.
“The FMU has common boundaries with the Usun Apau National Park and the proposed Sungai Moh Wildlife Sanctuary.
“The geological features of the FMU landscape range from riverside flats to low undulating hills, which lead to rugged mountainous terrain with altitude ranges from 150 to 1,820 meters above sea level,” he said. — DayakDaily
