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Raise Your Voice, Not the Sea Level

  • Publication Date | June 4, 2014
  • Document Type | Media Statement
  • Programmes | Climate Change
  • Issues | Adaptation, Conservation, Mitigation
  • Tags | IPCC report, Penang, World Environment Day
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SAM & CAP staff seeking support for everyone to raise their voices and not the sea level
SAM & CAP staff seeking support for everyone to raise their voices and not the sea level

Tomorrow, the fifth of June is World Environment Day and the theme this year is “Raise Your Voice, Not the Sea Level”, focusing on small islands and climate change. According to the recently released IPCC Fifth Assessment Report, land and ocean surface temperatures have increased globally by nearly 1°C since 1901 (0.89°C global average), mainly as a result of human activities.

Should we in Malaysia be worried about climate change and sea level rise? With a coastline of 4,800 km, we in Malaysia should indeed be concerned because sea-level rise is expected to intensify inundation, storm surge, erosion and other coastal hazards.  Over the past few years, Malaysia has already experienced increase in intensity, duration and frequency of storms, floods and drought.

S.M. Mohamed Idris, President of SAM in a press conference for World Environment Day 2014

The National Coastal Vulnerability Index (NCVI) Study (2007) assessed the vulnerability of coastal areas in Malaysia to sea level rise. Data on sea level rise collected over a 20 year period (1986-2006) at Tanjung Piai in Johor, showed a rate of increase of 1.3 mm/year.  When the NCVI study results are superimposed on the global-high (worst case) projection for SLR of 10mm/year (1 meter by the end of the century), an estimated 1,820ha of coastal land at Tanjung Piai and 148ha at Pantai Cenang, Langkawi will be inundated.[1]

Climate change is one indication of a much larger problem, which is humans’ unsustainable consumption, production and lifestyle. This is demonstrated by the use of dirty, non-renewable energy; our exploitation of forests and natural ecosystems; our unsustainable ways of farming, fishing and consuming food; our craze over development; our unsustainable habits of consuming the Earth’s resources and discarding them as wastes.

SAM & CAP staff in support of World Environment Day, 2014

Human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels since the start of the Industrial Revolution have increased atmospheric Carbon Dioxide (CO2) concentrations. Deforestation and other land use changes have also released carbon from the biosphere. Thus as mitigation measure, we need concerted action to limit the growth of energy demand, improve energy efficiency, increase use of renewable energy and find means to minimize emissions from land-use change, for example, by ensuring low-carbon, chemical-free agriculture. 

The waste management sector which is a source of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions can become a major contributor to climate change mitigation. Composting is one vital strategy for curbing GHG emissions. When discarded materials are recycled, they provide industry with an alternative source of raw materials from which to make new products. This results in less demand for virgin materials whose extraction, transport and processing are major sources of GHG emissions. Recycling thus reduces emissions in virtually all extractive industries: mining, forestry, agriculture, and petroleum extraction. 

Food is a key driver of climate change. Food production, excessive packaging, processing and transportation accounts for around half of all human-generated GHG emissions.[2] Chemical fertilizers, heavy machinery and other petroleum-dependent farm technologies contribute significantly. A new food system by restructuring agriculture and the larger food system around food sovereignty, small scale farming, agro-ecology and local markets can greatly contribute to reducing global emissions.

Sand and gravel are mined world-wide and account for the largest volume of solid material extracted globally. They are being extracted at a rate far greater than their renewal. Our increasing dependence and the significant impact that extraction of natural resources has on the environment, has been mostly ignored. 

For example the land reclamation projects in the coast of Penang such as in Jelutong, Tanjung Tokong, Batu Uban requires millions of tonnes of rock and sand.  

With rapid urbanization, more roads are being built to facilitate movement of people and goods.  There is an increasing trend of motor-vehicle ownership and thus the transportation sector is also a significant source of GHG emissions. Fuel consumed by aircrafts, marine vessels and the rapidly growing international trade are also major sources of global emissions.  A variety of measures are needed to reduce the growth and impact of these emissions such as efforts to encourage energy-efficient vehicle technologies, promote efficient patterns of travel and land use, and develop alternatives to petroleum-based fuels.

Generally, the levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere are continuing to increase. It is clear that the future climate will be warmer, sea levels will rise, global rainfall patterns will change, and ecosystems will be altered. High level international agreements alone are not going to stop climate change.  

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) and the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) call for concerted action by all sectors to reduce GHG emissions and combat climate change. The needs of vulnerable poor communities must also be addressed so that they can adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Raise Your Voice for Climate Justice! 

S.M. MOHAMED IDRIS

President Sahabat Alam Malaysia & Consumers Association of Penang 


[1] Malaysia’s Second National Communication (NC2) submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

[2] Food and Climate Change: The Forgotten Link. GRAIN 2011

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Testimonials

Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah satu badan bukan kerajaan (NGO) yang telah sekian lama berjuang mempertahan kelestarian alam. Ia juga mendidik masyarakat tentang pentingnya kebersamaan dalam pemikiran dan tindakan agar alam ini dapat kita wariskan kepada generasi hadapan dalam keadaan yang elok dan terpelihara. Dalam pada itu juga SAM giat membantu golongan nelayan pantai dalam memperjuangkan hak-hak mereka sehinggalah tertubuhnya Persatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING). Nelayan pantai sepenuh masa ini dididik oleh SAM sehingga mereka mampu memainkan peranan sebagai pemimpin nelayan yang meneruskan kesinambungan memperjuangkan hak-hak nelayan pantai lainnya. Sebagai contoh SAM telah berjaya menyedarkan masyarakat nelayan keperluan menjaga hutan paya bakau untuk kebaikan hasil tangkapan nelayan itu sendiri.
Jamaluddin Mohamad Bualik
Jamaluddin Mohamad BualikPersatuan Pendidikan dan Kebajikan Jaringan Nelayan Pantai Malaysia (JARING)
During the 1980s, I used to read about the Consumers’ Association of Penang (CAP) in the news. After retirement, some time in 2001, while lazing around, I read news about the construction of a carbon in leach plant using sodium cyanide to extract gold in Bukit Koman. My friends and I visited CAP and we were introduced to SAM and her legal team. We discussed the details of filing a case against the gold mining company and the department of environment with Ms Meenakshi Raman and her legal team. That was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between lawyers from SAM and many of us from Bukit Koman. We had many ups and downs in our struggle to shut down the gold mine that was causing a nuisance in our village. But, as a community we never gave up because SAM had our backs.
Hue Fui How
Hue Fui HowSecretary, Bukit Koman Ban Cyanide in Goldmining Action Committee (BCAC)
Sahabat Alam Malaysia adalah sebuah NGO yang memperjuangkan nasib masyarakat luar bandar khasnya. SAM menerima aduan-aduan masyarakat dan menyelesaikan masalah yang dihadapi. SAM telah mewujudkan ramai aktivis-aktivis sosial dan alam sekitar. Pada era 1980 dan 90an SAM sangat dihormati oleh masyarakat dan agensi kerajaan. Apabila media sosial menguasai maklumat maka SAM pun terkesan dan masalah masyarakat terus disalurkan dengan pelbagai cara. SAM perlu mewujudkan aktivis-aktivis pelapis yang muda untuk terus membantu masyarakat. SAM juga perlu membuat perubahan supaya banyak turun kelapangan dan jangan mengharapkan laporan media sahaja. Tingkatkan prestasi sebagaimana pada zaman kegemilangan SAM di era 80-90an.
Che Ani Mt Zain
Che Ani Mt Zain
SAM taught me the importance of social activism and the role it plays in upholding the rights of people and the protection of the environment. In my experience, SAM has never hesitated to speak up in defence of people and their environment, and has gone the extra mile to champion their rights, by helping communities take their battles to the higher ups and even to the courts.
Jessica Binwani
Jessica BinwaniPublic/Private Interest Lawyer
Semenjak kami kenal SAM, banyak pengalaman dan pengetahuan yg kami dapat. Kami telah belajar cara membuat baja asli daripada SAM. Semenjak itu, bermulalah minat kami dalam aktiviti pertanian. Dengan memperolehi kemahiran dalam membuat baja asli dan penanaman lestari, kami juga telah dapat menambahkan pendapatan sampingan kami. Ini lebih baik daripada tanah kami terbiar dan tidak diusahakan. Terima kasih SAM kerana sudi memberi bantuan dan tunjuk ajar kepada Persatuan kami.
Chedo Anak Nyuwen
Chedo Anak NyuwenPersatuan Penduduk Sg Buri, Bakong, Marudi
My journey with SAM started when her community organisers took me to the meet the paddy farmers of Kedah, connecting my growing interest in environmental law with our people who struggle to work the land in the face of pollution, replacement of traditional seeds with commercial hybrids and their accompanying chemical package of fertilisers and weedicides. I then had the honour to work with SAM in the struggle for the rights of the native communities of Sarawak, in defence of their forests from massive logging and destructive mega-projects. In every issue that SAM takes up, she combines rigorous research with the realities and voices of the communities to advocate for policies and laws that care for people and nature. From the courts to the elected legislators to policy makers and implementers and to the United Nations, SAM walks side by side with the communities in Malaysia. How can I not be inspired by the vision and passion of the generations of women and men who coalesce to form SAM?
Chee Yoke Ling
Chee Yoke Lingstudent of SAM, Executive Director of Third World Network, SAM’s sister organisation

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Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Headquarters)
No. 1, Jalan Joki, 11400 Penang,
Malaysia
Tel: +604 827 6930
Fax: +604 827 6932

Sahabat Alam Malaysia (Marudi Office)
129A, First Floor,
Jalan Tuanku Taha,
P.O.Box 216,
98058 Marudi, Baram, Sarawak,
Malaysia
Tel & Fax: +6085 758 973

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