The MCA today ticked off the PAS-led Kedah government for allegedly not paying enough attention to the environment to the extent of allowing “forest desecration rampage”.

NONE In a statement today, Gurun assemblyperson Leong Yong Kong alleged that the Pakatan Kedah administration had allowed illegal logging and over-clearing in the state, leading to siltation and river pollution.

Leong said that the Kedah Menteri Besar Incorporated's admission that the murky waters were partly caused by soil runoff from the 600ha land cleared land for the Ladang Sejahtera, Baling project “comes too-little-too-late” and contradicts PAS' promise of sustainable development.

“Logging activities plaque up to 5,000 hectares of the Gunung Inas Forest Reserve which is slated to be stripped for a cloned rubber trees project for the Ladang Sejahtera.

“Why have the sole DAP state assemblyman and three PKR excos failed, in PAS-dominated Kedah, to urge the authorities to act against excessive logging?” he asked.

Leong also brought attention to alleged ongoing illegal logging near the Ulu Muda catchment, as reported by The Star, quoting Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang general manager Jaseni Maidinsa.

WWF: No illegal logging in Ulu Muda

However, in a statement yesterday, World Wildlife Foundation Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia) executive director Dionysius SK Sharma said the foundation's checks found that The Star article was “ misleading ”.

“To the best knowledge of WWF-Malaysia, there is currently no illegal logging being carried out within the confines of the Ulu Muda forest and the catchment of the three dams (Muda, Ahning and Pedu) in the area,” he said.

He added that illegal logging was detected in the Pedu area in 1997 and action had been taken by the forestry department.

“We have checked with the Kedah Forestry Department and they have verified that there is no recent report of illegal logging in the area,” he said.