GEORGE TOWN - An environmental-interest group has raised concerns over the high number of bald patches seen on Penang Hill.

Citizen Awareness Chant Group (Chant) said parts of the hill seemed to have been stripped bare with swathes of earth exposed.

There is fear that rampant land-clearing could have taken place for agricultural purposes.

Chant legal adviser Yan Lee said clearing activities had marred the beauty of the hill and such acts could have been done illegally.

"It is shocking to see that most parts of the hill were rather botak (bald).

"We are concerned if those cutting the hills could have obtained permission from the local authorities."

Yan said the state government should send enforcement officers to the hill to ensure compliance of laws related to hillside development. Checks by the New Straits Times showed the bald patches had mushroomed on both sides of the Penang Hill railway line.

There were more than 20 patches all over the hill range, with irregular cuts, terraces and structures built haphazardly on the hill.

Municipal Council of Penang Island (MPPP) president Datuk Patahiyah Ismail did not respond to queries about the matter at press time.

The Chant group has been critical of the flourishing hillside development, the most recent being the Bukit Relau hilltop clearing last year.

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Group raises concern over 'balding' Penang Hill

Clearing Land in Florida 1950
A Tribute to Joyce, my bride of 65 years The 8mm Kodachrome movie was shot by my father on a visit from Wisconsin in January, 1950. How can you not love a wo...

By: Richard Horner

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Clearing Land in Florida 1950 - Video

Nairobi New satellite imagery shows extensive clearance of land used by indigenous groups to make way for state-run sugar plantations in Ethiopia's Lower Omo Valley, Human Rights Watch and International Rivers said today.

Virtually all of the traditional lands of the 7,000-member Bodi indigenous group have been cleared in the last 15 months, without adequate consultation or compensation. Human Rights Watch has also documented the forced resettlement of some indigenous people in the area.

The land clearing is part of a broader Ethiopian government development scheme in the Omo Valley, a United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, including dam construction, sugar plantations, and commercial agriculture.

The project will consume the vast majority of the water in the Omo River basin, potentially devastating the livelihoods of the 500,000 indigenous people in Ethiopia and neighboring Kenya who directly or indirectly rely on the Omo's waters for their livelihoods.

"Ethiopia can develop its land and resources but it shouldn't run roughshod over the rights of its indigenous communities," said Leslie Lefkow, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch.

"The people who rely on the land for their livelihoods have the right to compensation and the right to reject plans that will completely transform their lives."

A prerequisite to the government's development plans for the Lower Omo Valley is the relocation of 150,000 indigenous people who live in the vicinity of the sugar plantations into permanent sedentary villages under the government's deeply unpopular "villagization" program.

Under this program, people are to be moved into sedentary villages and provided with schools, clinics, and other infrastructure. As has been seen in other parts of Ethiopia, these movements are not all voluntary.

Satellite images analyzed by Human Rights Watch show devastating changes to the Lower Omo Valley between November 2010 and January 2013, with large areas originally used for grazing cleared of all vegetation and new roads and irrigation canals crisscrossing the valley.

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Ethiopia: Land, Water Grabs Devastate Communities

Land Clearing| Excavation|Bull Dozer|Hydro Ax Mulching|Demolition|Hydroseeding Services Houston TX
Land Clearing of Texas - Call 713-999-4811 - http://www.LandClearingofTexas.com - We specialize in Land Clearing Services, Excavation Services, Bull Dozer Se...

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Land Clearing| Excavation|Bull Dozer|Hydro Ax Mulching|Demolition|Hydroseeding Services Houston TX - Video

Workers from Aldrich Timber continue clearing trees and bulldozing on the 14 acres of land in preparation for ground work on St. Rd. 200 on Tuesday February 11, 2014. The future home of Volkswagen dealership is being constructed by Magnum Construction Company.

Construction crews are clearing land on Southwest State Road 200 for the site of Gettel Automotive Group's new BMW, Porsche and Volkswagen dealership in Marion County.

The dealership currently operates at 3949 SW College Road and is planning to move 3 miles to the southwest, near Building Blocks of Ocala Preschool.

Marcobay Construction of Lakeland is the general contractor for the project, and a Marcobay official, who asked not to be identified, said the goal is to have the new location open by the end of 2014. Gettel officials, who did not return calls for comment, paid $4.5 million for almost 22 acres and told the Star-Banner in August 2012 the dealership was outgrowing its current home, which has six usable acres of land. About 5.5 acres in the new location will be used for Volkswagen, about 5 acres will be used for BMW, and about 3 acres will go for Porsche, with some 5 acres remaining for a possible additional line in the future, Gettel officials said in 2012.

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Crews clearing land for new BMW, Porsche and VW dealership

Surgical Land Clearing-Gordon food plots

By: John Pierce

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Surgical Land Clearing-Gordon food plots - Video

PARIT BUNTAR: One of Malaysias biggest mangrove ecosystems is under threat as land clearing activities have begun at a patch near Kampung Kuala Gula.

At over 40,000ha, the Matang mangrove forest in Peraks Kerian district is the largest mangrove ecosystem in the peninsula, but it was subject to a series of land clearing activities last week.

Friends of Mangroves (FoM) chairman Zakaria Mohamed said about 6ha of mangroves had been cleared to pave way for the construction of a shrimp farm located about 30km from here.

The area is near the popular Kuala Gula bird sanctuary, where an estimated 200,000 birds stop over during the migration season between August and April every year.

What upsets us the most is seeing our efforts in rehabilitating the mangrove swamps go down the drain, Zakaria said.

Since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, a heightened sense of awareness about the importance of mangroves has been ingrained in the locals, especially in the Kerian area, which was one of the coastal areas in Perak to be hit.

Villagers from Kampung Kuala Gula are concerned that the removal of the plot of mangroves from a swamp by the name of Teluk Rubiah here will lead to even more land clearing.

We have planted countless mangrove trees in the last seven years with the support of government agencies and other NGOs. But now, we do not know how much longer we can keep up with our endeavours, said Zakaria.

The 500ha Teluk Rubiah mangroves not to be confused with a bay with the same name near Sitiawan, also in Perak are 6km away from the village.

Besides migratory bird watching, the Kuala Gula area is well known for ecotourism, including village homestays, boat rides to observe mangroves, fireflies, cage culture farms, traditional fishermen at work, cockle culture and shrimp paste processing factories.

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40,000ha of mangrove forest in Kerian district threatened by land clearing

JAKARTA, Feb 12 (Bernama) -- At least three flight schedules were delayed in Riau of Sumatra due to poor feasibility incurred by haze from land clearing and the satellite observation shows a steep rise in the number of hot spots on Sumatra and Borneo islands, Xinhua news agency reported officials as saying here on Wednesday.

Several of the hot spots are located in forest conservation areas on the Sumatra island, including in the provinces of Riau, North Sumatra, Aceh, Jambi, and South Sumatra, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the national disaster agency, said.

"The feasibility in Riau was less than 500 meters so that the flight witnessed disruption. Yesterday (Tuesday) three flight schedules of Garuda Indonesia, Lion Air and Air Asia were delayed, " he told Xinhua via phone.

According to a satellite observation, the hot spots scaled up and more than doubled to 470 on Tuesday on Sumatra and Borneo islands from 187 a day earlier, said Sutopo.

Indonesia has been battered by fires resulting from land clearing for new plantations since the 1990s, with haze caused enveloping neighboring Asean countries that hampered business spheres and incurred multi-billion US dollars of financial loss.

Indonesian authorities would take comprehensive measures, including using water bombs, modifying weather and enforcing law, to extinguish ongoing fires on Sumatra and Borneo islands in an effort to prevent a repeat of haze enveloping neighboring countries like years ago from happening, Sutopo said.

The condition of the dry season this year, which is forecast to be drier than in previous years, and weak El Nino, are threatening to exacerbate the spread of fire, he said.

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Haze disrupts flights in Indonesia, more hot spots found

JAKARTA, Feb 12 (Bernama) -- At least three flight schedules were delayed in Riau of Sumatra due to poor feasibility incurred by haze from land clearing and the satellite observation shows a steep rise in the number of hot spots on Sumatra and Borneo islands, Xinhua news agency reported officials as saying here on Wednesday.

Several of the hot spots are located in forest conservation areas on the Sumatra island, including in the provinces of Riau, North Sumatra, Aceh, Jambi, and South Sumatra, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the national disaster agency, said.

"The feasibility in Riau was less than 500 meters so that the flight witnessed disruption.

Yesterday (Tuesday) three flight schedules of Garuda Indonesia, Lion Air and Air Asia were delayed, " he told Xinhua via phone.

According to a satellite observation, the hot spots scaled up and more than doubled to 470 on Tuesday on Sumatra and Borneo islands from 187 a day earlier, said Sutopo.

Indonesia has been battered by fires resulting from land clearing for new plantations since the 1990s, with haze caused enveloping neighboring ASEAN countries that hampered business spheres and incurred multi-billion US dollars of financial loss.

Indonesian authorities would take comprehensive measures, including using water bombs, modifying weather and enforcing law, to extinguish ongoing fires on Sumatra and Borneo islands in an effort to prevent a repeat of haze enveloping neighboring countries like years ago from happening, Sutopo said.

The condition of the dry season this year, which is forecast to be drier than in previous years, and weak El Nino, are threatening to exacerbate the spread of fire, he said.

-- BERNAMA

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Haze Disturbs Flights In Indonesia, More Hot Spots Found

ABC The expansion plan will make Woolnorth one of the largest grass-fed dairy operations in the world.

A $122 million dairy expansion at the Van Diemen's Land Company in north-west Tasmania has been given state approval.

VDL wants to double milk production at its Woolnorth property, creating 11 new dairy farms by converting beef operations and clearing land for another two.

The expansion plan will make Woolnorth one of the largest grass-fed dairy operations in the world.

The company has not yet announced investors for the project, but told shareholders late last year there were several interested parties.

Chief executive Mike Guerin says talks are progressing well.

"The sooner we can finish that equity raising obviously the better, it's a key part to this development program," he said.

The company has altered its land clearing plans after input from conservation groups.

Mr Guerin says planned native vegetation clearing has been reduced by half.

"We were thinking of clearing about half the remaining uncleared land on Woolnorth, or about 3,500 hectares," he said.

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Green light for $122m Woolnorth dairy expansion