FINAL VERSION FOR APPROVAL - Sdn Bhd - WWF Malaysia

Gunung Stong State Park Preliminary Management Plan
However, the grants are usually for relatively short periods of time (5 years and below), and
the focus may shift after the end of the programme. For Malaysia, a good example of a grant
is the RM6.5 million grant from DANCED (now DANIDA) to develop the nature education
center at Endau-Rompin National Park in collaboration with MNS, and the RM3 million
DANCED-Perlis State Forestry Department-WWF Malaysia collaboration to produce the
management plan for the Perlis State Park.
Smaller amounts of funding are available from some foreign embassies and high commissions
including the British High Commission, the German Embassy and the Netherlands Embassy.
6.6.4 Conservation Trust Fund
A conservation trust fund can be formed to collect funds from non-traditional sources such as
donations from corporations and the general public, and conservation fees levied on
earmarked hotel, airline tickets, and other businesses associated with the tourism industry.
For example, a surcharge of a few ringgit could be added to hotel room rates, based on a
voluntary arrangement with participating hotels and restaurants. The surcharge is then
collected, and at the end of the fiscal year, transferred to the conservation trust fund of a
particular protected area or management authority. The surcharge is a voluntary contribution
by hotel guests, and they have the option of not contributing. This arrangement, though
common in the developed (and some developing) countries, has not been explored in
Malaysia.
These revenues are then parked in the trust fund, which are then used for purposes decided by
a committee or a board of trustees established to manage the funds. These funds (in the form
of an endowment fund, sinking fund, or revolving funds), must be kept separate from the
traditional sources of funding, and there must be strict accountability and transparency in their
uses.
In Malaysia, perhaps the best example of a conservation trust fund is the one managed by the
Marine Parks Unit. A charge of RM5.00 per person is levied for international visitors for
each visit, and the accumulated funds are used for maintenance and upkeep of jetties.
Nevertheless, there must be transparency, as donors have the right to know how and where
the funds are utilised.
6.6.5 Payment for Ecological Services
Protected areas are more than conservation areas for wild animals and plants, but also provide
ecological services like water conservation, as most protected areas are also watersheds that
are tapped by water producers for water production, and by hydropower dams for electrical
generation. It is thus fair that, a certain amount be levied for the water users and operators, to
help cover the cost of maintaining the quality of the habitats (and hence, the quality of water
sources) for water producers and users. In relation to GSSP, perhaps some form of monetary
contribution or in kind support, could be solicited from the TNB or Musteq Hydro Sdn. Bhd
(an independent power producer), that have been using water from the Kenerong and
Semuliang catchments for electricity generation.
6.7 Demarcation of Boundaries
Clear demarcation of boundaries need proper surveys, followed by markers at certain
intervals to delineate GSSP from non-GSSP areas.
At certain intervals along the boundary, warning notices should be placed to establish the
management and jurisdiction rights of the Forestry Department, and prevent ignorance against
illegal land encroachments by offenders. The warning notices should caution against not only
killing of animals and illegal collections of plant materials, but also against encroachments
and fishing, and their penalties.
Some parts of GSSP may have already been encroached upon, but placement of warning
notices serve as a cautionary purpose to offenders, informing them that they do not have legal
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