ESTABLISHMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY SCIENCE DEMONSTRATION PILOT PROJECT ON RESTORING AND

MANAGING LANGAT RIVER, MALAYSIA FOR FUTURE

Dr. Rahmah ElfithriSenior Lecturer

Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI) UNIVERSITI KEBANGSAAN MALAYSIA (UKM)

elfith@ukm.edu.my

PROJECT TEAM

1. Dr. Rahmah Elfithri (Project Leader) – LESTARI, UKM

2. Prof. Dato' Dr. Mazlin bin Mokhtar – LESTARI, UKM

3. Prof. Dr. Mohd Raihan Taha – LESTARI, UKM

4. Prof. Dr. Md Pauzi Abdullah – Faculty of Science & Technology, UKM

5. Prof. Dr. Mohd Ekhwan Toriman – Faculty of Science , UKM

6. Prof. Dr. Ruhizan Md Yasin – Faculty of Education, UKM

7. Mr. Jasni Yaakub – LESTARI, UKM

8. Ms. Rd. Puteri Khairani Khirotdin – LESTARI, UKM

9. Mr. Mohamad Mahathir Amir Sultan – LESTARI, UKM

Introduction

• Sustainability science as a new emerging field can be a tool to solve a complex environmental anthropogenic issue by:

– Promoting an integrated approach of various disciplines

– Multi scale

– Across stakeholder

• It is a problem driven and solution oriented approach in creating a sustainable society requires the problem solving skills.

• Sustainability Science promotes “innovations in knowledge” that organize our vast knowledge so that integrated solutions can be found to complex issues.

• New, innovative research and educational programs should be developed and nurtured to provide education to support the development of such integrated approaches.

River Restoration

Restoration is the holistic medicine of environmental policy.

Under ecological perspective, restoration refers to the return of anecosystem to a close approximation of its condition prior todisturbance.

It might be river ecosystem or terrestrial ecosystem that forms the basinof the river.

Ultimate goal of a restoration intervention should be devoted toreturning damaged ecosystems to a condition that is structurally andfunctionally similar to the pre-disturbance state.

• Successful Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) implementation issaid to be participatory, integrated, adaptive, and ecosystem based.

• Including through participation of stakeholders at lowest appropriatelevel via learning approach that was conceptualised as social learning

• Learning by doing together; continuously, any issue that prevails in asociety;

• balancing top-down and bottom-up approaches beyond informative orconsultative participation

• Co-designing and co-deciding the mechanism

• It also highlights Decision Support System (DSS) implementation in LangatRiver Basin.

River Management

Objectives ofRestoration and Management

Restoration Management

To reduce man-made land degradation and soil erosion

To manage water demand with available supply

To arrest habitat degradation/loss and rehabilitate habitats where feasible, and to conserve and enhance bio-diversity

To protect and enhance river-related sites for recreation and tourism

To prevent water quality degradation and improve degraded water quality

To provide for and enhance navigational use of river channel

To mitigate severity of floods and reduce frequency of flooding

To initiate, develop and implement more effective governance systems and management support programme.

To rehabilitate eroding river banks and beds

To manage the river sand abstraction

Sustainability Science Demonstration Site Project Implementation

Project Implementer Project Demonstration Site

LESTARI

UKM

Local Stakeholders

UNESCO

STAR

JFIT

RESTORING AND

MANAGING LANGAT RIVER,

MALAYSIA FOR FUTURE

Project Funder/Initiator

Establishment of SustainabilityScience Demonstration

Pilot Project at Langat River Basin

• LRB is a unique and special basin in Malaysia because it lays within three (3) differentstate administrations, which are Selangor State, Negeri Sembilan State and the PutrajayaFederal Territory.

• LRB comprises of four (5) main districts: Hulu Langat, Kuala Langat, Sepang, Putrajaya andSeremban.

• It is situated approximately 27 km to the south of Kuala Lumpur (the capital city ofMalaysia). The catchment of the Langat River is about 2,350 km2 with a length of 200 kmflowing from Klang Valley to the Straits of Melaka.

• LRB Malaysia has been recognized as one of the UNESCO HELP River Basin since 2004(during the implementation phase of HELP) and was classified as Evolving HELP Basin,out of 91 catchments from 67 countries in the world.

• It is located in the mid-western part of Peninsular Malaysia and lays across two statesand one federal territory as mentioned above.

• This initiative led by Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI) ofUniversiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

Why Langat River Basin?

Langat HELP River Basin

• HELP is a cross cutting and transdisciplinary initiativeof the UNESCO led by the International HydrologicalProgramme (IHP). HELP has created a new approachto integrated catchment management through aframework for water law and policy experts, waterresource managers and water scientists to worktogether on water-related problems (UNESCO, 2010).

• The objectives of HELP are to deliver social, economicand environmental benefits to stakeholders throughsustainable and appropriate use of water by directinghydrological science towards improved integratedcatchment management basins and alsoimplementation of research through collaborationsbetween scientists, managers and stakeholders(UNESCO, 2004).

What is HELP?

Currently there are 91 HELP basins across the globe (in Australia, Asia, Africa, NorthAmerica and Latin America to demonstrate how HELP principles can be put into practice.The current HELP Network consists of 67 Member States of UNESCO.

Category Description

Group D: World Demonstration

HELP Basin

This is seen as demonstrating best practice in HELP and IWRM, and serves

as a model or demonstration basin for other basins - with something to

offer other basins.

Group O: Operational HELP Basin This is an established basin which may become a World Demonstration

Basin in due course. It is implementing the HELP philosophy in an integrated

manner and is involved with stakeholders in basin management.

Group E: Evolving HELP basin This is a basin which is not yet fully operational, but Well-developed plans

conforming to the HELP philosophy which are beginning to be implemented.

Group P: Proposed HELP Basin Additional information is needed to re-classify this basin. Further work is

required to develop plans and activities in an integrated way that supports

the HELP philosophy.

HELP Category

Overview of Langat River Basin

• Transboundary river basin – covers 3 states Selangor (78%) Negeri Sembilan (19%) Federal Territories of Putrajaya (3%)

• Situated approximately 27 km to the south of Kuala Lumpur (the capital city of Malaysia)

• Total basin area – 2,350 km. sq. & 200 km long• Population - 1,184,917 million in 2000, Growth rate 7.64%• Geographical location - located at latitude 02o50’ 48’’ N and longitude

101o40’ 48’’ E with the highest peak being at 820.8 m (2691 ft) and almost 75 percent of the catchment is hilly terrain with average slope 6-9’’ and another 25 percent of the areas are less than 6’’ while some swamps along the river.

Langat River Basin– Socio-Economics

• The Langat River Basin is currently the fastest developing area in the country, where a number of large scale social-economic projects have either currently taking shape or are already completed in the Basin:

The new township of Putrajaya (new Federal Government Administration Center)

The Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) for the information technology industry

Cyberjaya (the paperless electronic village and township)

The Malaysian BioValley project for biotechnology research/industry

The Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA)

The Formula One Grand Prix Circuit at Sepang

Several institutions of higher learning including universities

The management focus on IWRM and IRBM implementation at catchment level

Langat River Basin

Total Length: 200 km

Total Basin Area: 2,350 km2

Cyberjaya

Sepang F1 Circuit

Putrajaya

UKM

UPM

KLIA

THE LANGAT RIVER BASIN

Langat HELP River Basin, Malaysia

HELP River Basin NetworksShowing Langat River Basin in Malaysia

Out of 91 RB in the World & 26 RB in AP & 3 RB in SEA

Establishment of Sustainability Science Demonstration Pilot Project on Restoring and Managing Langat River,

Malaysia for Future

Objectives:

1. To gain knowledge on the interrelations between urban conditionsand the state of waters and the instruments and techniques fortheir management;

2. To identify ways to standardised sustainability sciencemethodologies and to identify potential sustainability indicators;

3. To increase resilience to climatic extremes in the Langat riverbasin;

4. To develop rehabilitation plan of the degraded urban waters basedon ecohydrology principles included in sustainable scienceprinciples

5. To develop urban storm water management tool based onecohydrology principles included in sustainable science principles;and

6. To produce and disseminate a document summarizing the keyfindings and recommendations.

Water PollutionWater pollution has become one of the main problem in the

Langat Basin and increased water deficiency has worsen the situation.

(Mokhtar et al. 2012)

PROJECT

ACTIVITIES

Collection of Baseline Qualitative and Quantitative Data

No. Organization Type of Data Collection

1. Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID)

Water Quality Flood Event Annual Rainfall Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) Plan 2005 Urban Stormwater Manual (MSMA)

2. Department of Environment (DOE) Pollution Prevention and River Water Quality Improvement Programme of Langat River Study Report 2003

Malaysia Environmental Quality Report (MEQR) 2004-2014

3. Department of Statistic Population number

4. Department of Agriculture (DOA) Land Use Map of Langat River Basin

5. Selangor Water Management Authority (SWMA)

Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM) Plan for Langat River Basin 2015

Selangor Water Management Authority Act 1999

6. Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), UKM

Pollution Sources Governance of Langat River Basin Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) Ecosystem Health of the Langat Basin Sustainable Development of Langat River Basin Upscaling MSMA Stormwater Management Ecohydrology of Langat

River

7 Town and Country Planning Department (JPBD)

Environmental Sensitive Areas Report Historical Sites in Langat River Basin

8. Economic Planning Unit (EPU) Review of the National Water Resources Study (2000-2050)

9. Ministry of Natural Resources and Management (NRE)

The formulation of National Water Resources Policy

10. Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA)

KeTTHA Annual Reports

1st Stakeholders Consultation Workshop

The main objectives of this workshop were to introduce the IWRM initiative at the Langat HELP River Basin, Malaysia; to introduce the Sustainability Science Demonstration Project: Restoring and Managing Langat River Basin, Malaysia; and to gather information on the current condition, issues and impact of the environment in the Langat River Basin.

(IWRM Success Story in Langat HELP River Basin, Malaysia)

6 Novemebr 2015Puri Pujangga Hotel, UKM

2nd Stakeholders Consultation Workshop(Focus Group Discussion with Langat

Stakeholders)18 May 2016, Puri Pujangg Hotel, UKM

The focus group discussion with LangatStakeholders is carried out through roundtable dialogue after presentations by keystakeholders from Selangor State, NegeriSembilan State and Putrajaya FederalTerritory representatives lead by Prof. Dato’.Dr Mazlin bin Mokhtar, the Deputy ViceChancellor for Research and Innovation ofUKM as well as Chairman of Langat UNESCOHELP River Basin Network in Malaysia. Itwas attended by 50 participants fromvarious stakeholders in Langat River Basin.

Stakeholders Discussion/Dialogue

Site Observation, Identification & Verification

No Location Site Visit Area1. Putrajaya Federal

Territory Lake Wetland Dam Administrative Areas Urban Water Management

2. Selangor State Langat River and its Tributaries Aboriginal Area (Kuala Langat) Historical Area (Jugra) Residential Areas (Hulu Langat) Livestock Areas Dams (Langat & Semenyih) Coastal Zone Areas (Sepang)

3. Negeri Sembilan State

Industrial Areas (Nilai) Labu River

Data Analysis

• Analysis of Land Use and Land Cover Changes Trends in Langat RiverBasin for the year of 1974, 1991, 2001 & 2013.

• Analysis of River Water Quality Index (WQI) Status in Langat RiverBasin by using data from year 2003-2014.

• Analysis of Flood Occurrence Trends and their relationship with otherindicator in Langat River Basin, by using two sets of data covering tworange of time (1985-1999 & 2006-2013).

• Analysis of Watershed Sustainability Index (WSI) for Langat RiverBasin, which uses a pressure–state–response function based on basinHydrology, Environment, Life and Policy (HELP) state condition byusing the available data for the period of 2009 to 2013.

KEY

RESULT

Key Issues in Langat River Basin

Key Issues

LRB

Deterioration of Water Quality

Urban Stormwater

Fragmentation

Water Shortage

Overall Land Use Changes in LRB

Land use Types 1974 (ha) (%) 1991 (ha) (%) 2001 (ha) (%) 2013 (ha) (%)Forest 52,579.7 17.9 50,906.4 17.3 45,071.9 15.4 48,285.0 16.5Mangroves & Peat swamp

75,252.6 25.7 37,014.5 12.6 25,630.7 8.7 27,560.8 9.4

Agriculture 155,249.0 52.9 170,705.0 58.2 164,841.0 56.2 142,387.916 48.5Developed Area 7,022.8 2.4 28,510.7 9.7 51,502.8 17.5 69,056.1 23.5Waterbody 3,267.3 1.1 6,401.5 2.2 6,207.1 2.1 6,009.113 2.0Total 293,370.3 100 293,340.5 100 293,253.6 100 293,298.875 100

Water Quality Index (WQI) Status

74.1374.60

72.67

77.93

80.33

75.93

73.00

76.73

79.7580.38

78.75

78.00

68.00

70.00

72.00

74.00

76.00

78.00

80.00

82.00

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

WQ

I

Year

WQI average of Langat River Basin from 2003-2014

River WQIWater

ClassesStatus

Sg. Chuau 87.92 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Jijan 84.83 II Slightly Polluted

Sg.Lui 91.58 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Semenyih 83.25 II Slightly Polluted

Sg.Langat 71.42 III Polluted

Sg. Pajam 75.17 III Polluted

Sg Anak Chuau 77.67 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Batang Nilai 59.67 III Polluted

Sg. Beranang 82.25 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Buan 75.50 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Rinching 72.63 III Polluted

Sg. Limau Manis 68.63 III Polluted

Sg. Balak 61.75 III Polluted

Sg. Batang Labu 76.75 II Slightly Polluted

Sg. Batang Benar 67.13 III Polluted

Water Quality Index (WQI) Status

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Hulu Langat 16 9 15 12 7 16 28 9

Kuala Langat 12 0 8 3 18 10 7 6

Sepang 5 3 18 12 27 21 21 4

16

9

15

12

7

16

28

9

12

0

8

3

18

10

7 653

18

12

27

21 21

4

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

33

12

41

27

52

47

56

19

0.00

500.00

1000.00

1500.00

2000.00

2500.00

3000.00

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Occurrence Mean rainfall (mm)

Flood Occurrences and RainfallPattern

Watershed Sustainability Index(WSI) Status

Analysis of Watershed Sustainability Index (WSI) for Langat River Basin, which usesa pressure–state–response function based on basin Hydrology, Environment, Lifeand Policy (HELP) state condition by using the available data for the period of 2009to 2013.

The WSI Result for Langat HELP River Basin is shown below:

Score < 0.50 : Bottleneck

H = Hydrology indicator (0-1)

E = Environmental indicator (0-1)

L = Livelihood indicator (0-1)

P = Policy indicator (0-1)

WSI < 0.5: Low

0.5 < WSI < 0.8: Medium

WSI > 0.8: High

WSI = _______________

4

H+E+L+P

Framework of Sustainability Sciencefor Sustainable Management

of Langat River Basin

• Framework of Sustainability Science for Sustainable Management of Langat River Basin has developed for implementation - in line with other Langat River Basin Management Plans produced by LUAS and DID.

Strategy and Action Plan

Enabling

Environment

Organization

and

Institutional

Roles

Implementation

Instruments

Education

and

Outreach

Monitoring

and

Evaluation

WAY FORWARD

• To ensure sustainable development, water resources need to be managedin an integrated and holistic manner.

• River management becomes sustainable with good restoration andmanagement practices.

• River restoration took place to some extent in Langat River Basin but anumber of challenges like forest fragmentation, development pressure onland use, forest cover loss are still present.

• Restoring and managing river are integral part of IRBM implementation.• It is possible to overcome these challenges by IRBM implementation in

Langat River Basin including through Social Learning, CollaborativeDecision Making (CDM), Sustainability Science Approach, etc.

• Research and educational programmes should be expanded to reach allrelevant stakeholders, such as the public sector, the business sector,NGOs and local communities.

• Programmes for Improving Langat HELP River Basin need to be done suchas Development of Langat Research Information Centre (LRIC) forSustainability Science of Langat River Basin.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

• Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), UKM• UNESCO Office Jakarta• Japan Funds-in-Trust (JFIT)• Participation and contribution from key agencies and stakeholders in Langat River

Basin which involved and provided data and information during this projectincluding during data collection, during site visits as well as during 1st and 2nd

Stakeholder Consultation Workshops conducted under this study, especiallyDepartment of Irrigation and Drainage (DID), Putrajaya Corporation (PPJ), SelangorWater Management Authority (SWMA/(LUAS), Department of Environment (DOE),National Water Services Commission (SPAN), National Hydraulic Research Instituteof Malaysia (NAHRIM), Economic Planning Unit (EPU), Ministry of NaturalResources and Environment (NRE), Ministry of Energy, Green Technology andWater (KeTTHA), Department of Agriculture (DOA), Department of StatisticMalaysia, Humid Tropics Centre Kuala Lumpur (HTCKL), UNESCO-IHP Malaysia,Malaysian Water Partnership (MyWP), WWF-Malaysia, Global Environment Centre(GEC), CETDEM, EcoKnights, Indah Water Konsortium (IWK), Eco DevelopmentFacilities Sdn. Bhd., Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and University Kuala Lumpur(IUKL), researchers from UKM and Local Communities in Langat River Basin.

For Further Info please contact:

Dr. Rahmah ElfithriLangat HELP River Basin Coordinator& Senior Lecturer/Research FellowInstitute for Environment and Development (LESTARI)Universiti Kebangsaan MalaysiaEmail: elfith@ukm.edu.my