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monitored via radio (VHF and UHF) or satellite collars to determine the routine movement of
wildlife around the project area.
There are several methods by which wildlife-human conflicts can be mitigated;
Wildlife Rescue, Rehabilitation and Release Operation – This operation is needed when, i)
conflict wildlife needs to be taken out of the project area, ii) removal of wildlife associated with
total loss of habitats such as land clearing and inundation of forest areas, iii) sick, injured and
displaced wildlife due to poaching and habitat loss, and iv) captive wildlife surrendered by the
owner. The wildlife rescue operation is also sometimes known as wildlife evacuation (when the
individuals need to be captured and translocated to other safe and suitable habitats). PERHILITAN
should conduct this operation. For a rescued wildlife individual, there are three mitigation options
i) to release this individual immediately to a suitable habitat if it is healthy, ii) if it is not healthy,
major treatment is required and needs to house temporarily at the NWRC for treatment before
release, and iii) individual (e.g. young) with lack of survival skills need training or rehabilitation at
the NWRC.
Habitat Rehabilitation (or Restoration) and Enrichment Programme – The focus of habitat
rehabilitation and restoration are open areas due to land clearing and earthwork as part of
construction and logging activities. Habitat rehabilitation and enrichment mean improving the
quality of the habitat by planting cover vegetation such as trees and grass to prevent erosion and
provide wildlife habitat and food. Artificial salt licks may be necessary to increase the quality of the
habitat. Habitat restoration is the same process of planting cover vegetation according to the
climax habitat community of the area. There are four reasons why habitat
rehabilitation/restoration and enrichment programme are needed; i) to reduce surface erosion if
an open area is not covered with vegetation, ii) to enhance the forest habitat regeneration process,
iii) to provide habitat for wildlife by increasing food sources and shelter (grazing area), and iv) to
increase the aesthetic value of the project area after completion of the project. The programme
can be done with the advice of the Forestry Department and PERHILITAN. In this programme, a
nursery may be needed to house and nurse seed and seedling stock for the replanting programme.
Finally, monitoring the rehabilitated area is crucial (e.g., Camera trapping) to determine the
function of the salt licks and the effectiveness of the grazing area to wildlife.
Enforcement of Wildlife Conservation Act (716) – The Wildlife Conservation Act (716) is a law to
protect the welfare of wildlife and wildlife populations from extinction. The enforcement involves
patrolling along unauthorised trails, forest areas, and surrounding areas, roadblocks at the main
access roads to prevent illegal poaching, ambush, search of premises for illegal activities, and traps
and snares removal operations. These activities should be conducted solely by PERHILITAN as
required.
Signboards – Installing a signboard is one of the mitigation measures to reduce human-wildlife
conflict, especially vehicle-wildlife collusion. Vehicle-wildlife collusion would cause injury to
wildlife and human, damage to vehicles, and result in human or wildlife death. The impacts vary
depending on the type of car, speed of cars, size of the road, type of road and size of wildlife.
Compilation of data on wildlife crossing areas, high incidence of roadkill, and hotspots for
poachers is used to determine the right place for signboards. Signboards are one of the ways to
educate and warn motorists and locals about high-risk areas for the safety of both human and
wildlife.
Emergency Response Plan (ERP) via (Hotline) – It is the channel through which reports can be
made directly to PERHILITAN on illegal poaching, wildlife conflict, habitat encroachment in forest
reserves and national parks, animal abuse and cruelty, illegal wildlife trading, and wildlife
smuggling.
Education and Awareness Programme – The main objective of this programme is to educate local
residents, loggers, construction workers, plantation workers and adjacent local communities.
Ideally, this programme should be conducted by PERHILITAN with the cooperation of NGOs,
universities, and local communities. Education and awareness programmes can be conducted in
various ways, such as talks, pamphlets, posters, exhibitions, seminars, social media, blogs and
homepages.
Training – PERHILITAN is not the only body that can implement a WMP; it can also be
implemented in cooperation with other institutions such as private companies, universities and
16 GUIDANCE DOCUMENT FOR PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION OF WILDLIFE
MANAGEMENT PLAN (WMP) IN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)