Malua Biobank Operations Report Submitted by the Sabah Forestry Department May 2009 - June 2009
Protection Boundary monitoring and patrol, gate installations, signage installation and maintenance, night roadblocks and aerial surveillance are crucial activities to protecting the wildlife of the Malua Biobank. Monitoring and patrol are primarily carried out in three locations within the Biobank: Northern Malua, North East Malua and South West Malua. BOUNDARY PATROL: Boundary Patrol is regularly done every two days by SFD. NIGHT ROADBLOCKS: Night roadblocks are primarily concentrated along the main road in the Malua Biobank. Night roadblocks are necessary to prevent illegal entry and poaching activities in the Malua Biobank. AERIAL SURVEYS: No aerial surveys were conducted during this reporting period. GATE INSTALLATION: The SFD staff installed five gates in Compartments 49, 50, 56, 57, and 71 during this reporting period. The gates were installed at entry points heading into the wildlife corridor. SIGNAGE INSTALLATION: Three units of signboards have been installed at Compartments 57 and 26. There were also 19 Forest Department plate warning sign- boards, indicating the prohibition of trespassing and hunting, which were installed between the Malua Biobank and oil palm plantation boundaries. INCIDENTS: The following incidents regarding protection were reported during this period: The SFD rangers executed routine night patrol and monitoring along the main road in compartment 57 and there was no hunting activity recorded during the period. The SFD rangers executed boundary inspection and monitoring of several entry points in Compartments 14, 15 and 16 that could be used by poachers to enter Northern Malua and no encroachment or poaching was found. The SFD rangers found bullet casings and hunting platforms in the plantation adjacent to Malua in Compartments 30, 31, 36, 37 and 38. This area is known as a hot spot for poaching wild pig.
` Wildlife Management Orangutan bridges, hornbill nesting boxes, the creation and maintenance of natural and artificial salt licks and night spotting allow the SFD to monitor and assess the wildlife of the Malua Biobank. ORANGUTAN BRIDGES: Monitoring was delayed until the next reporting period due to vehicle problems and the SFD staff training schedules. HORNBILL NESTING BOXES: Monitoring was delayed until the next reporting period due to vehicle problems and the SFD staff training schedules. NATURAL SALTLICKS: The SFD observed that natural salt licks at Compartments 40, 41, 66 and 84 are actively used by barking deer, sambar deer, elephant and wild pig. ARTIFICIAL SALTLICKS: The SFD staff installed four artificial saltlicks at Compartments 49, 56, 57 and 62. The SFD staff observed the saltlicks being used by tembadau (banteng), deer and wild pig. NIGHT SPOTTING: The SFD staff regularly observes wildlife during night spotting sessions near Compartments 57 and 71.
Infrastructure Infrastructure improvements include the purchase of surveying and transportation equipment and the completion of road improvements in the Malua Biobank in order for the staff to properly protect, restore and monitor the forest. EQUIPMENT: The SFD staff purchased one tripod, one digital hand held scale, three Pentax cameras, one Handycam, six camera traps, and six memory cards. The SFD staff also replaced four vehicle tires and performed maintenance on one of the staff vehicles. ROAD IMPROVEMENT: The SFD staff inspected the access road which leads to Kuamat and found that the timber bridge had collapsed. The SFD staff also established a proper main trail heading to the waterfall in Compartment 45.
The Malua BioBank The Malua rainforest is located in east Sabah (Malaysia), near Lahad Datu and immediately north of the Danum Valley Protection Forest Reserve. The rainforest is surrounded by six palm oil estates and acts as a crucial buffer zone for the pristine Danum Valley conservation area to the south. Malua consists mainly of lowland and freshwater swamp forests and provides vital habitat to one of the world s highest concentration of orangutans as well as for other critically endangered species such as the Sumatran rhino, tembadau (banteng), bay cat, Sunda clouded leopard, Bornean gibbon, Malayan sun bear and the pygmy elephant. At present, logging and the development of oil palm plantations are reducing the area of rainforest and threatening many of Borneo s important wildlife species. The Sabah Government and private investors have created the Malua Wildlife Habitat Conservation bank (MWHCB), or Malua Biobank, in order to invest and rehabilitate the Malua rainforest. The Malua Biobank is a first-ever endangered species bank located in a tropical forest. The Malua Biobank works through a four-way legal agreement between private and public entities. It is important to note that in order to ensure a reliable stewardship for the long term, the Sabah Government has contractually agreed to implement the Conservation Management Plan and to be monitored by the Malua Trust. Moreover, it has committed to halt logging in the Malua rainforest for a period of 50 years, and significant financial penalties are imposed for any breach of the Malua Biobank agreement. Finally, a steering committee, comprising of members of the Sabah Government and the Malua Biobank, and an advisory committee, composed of local and international environmental groups have been created. The former reviews, approves and monitors the implementation and financial management of the Conservation Management Plan, and the latter provides guidance on technical aspects of conservation and independent scrutiny of the project.