Geographically, Penang National Park is situated on the northwest corner of Penang Island. The park is considered to be the smallest national park in the world. It covers an area of 1462 ha of which 1181 ha on land and 1381 ha in the marine zone. It was the first national park to be gazetted under the National Parks Act of 1980. Part of the park had been logged between the late 1910s and the late 1930s. The area has seen been silviculturally treated (Ong and Dhanarajan, 1976). Despite being logged previously, however, there are currently about 72 ha of virgin jungle reserve left in the park and these areas are floristically rich (Leong, Undated).
Despite its small size, Penang National Park processes some unique characteristics. Among them, its diversity of ecological habitats, the rich fauna and the number of unique flora found. The Penang National Park is one of the few remaining areas on Penang Island which still comprises natural rainforest and small mammals. It offers a wide variety of ecosystem from mangrove to sandy beach, rocky coastal lowland and dipterocarp hill forest.
In 1959, the then Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve was first proposed to be gazetted as a national park or state park initiated by a group known as Committee for the Preservation of Areas of Natural Beauty, Pulau Pinang (Quek, 1998).
In an official memorandum in 1976, the MNS, Penang Branch requested the state government of Penang to elevate Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve to that of a national park.
Between October to November 1978, the MNS, Penang Branch with the collaboration with School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia(USM) conducted a natural resources survey on the park. In that brief survey; 25 species of mammals, 53 species of butterflies, 46 species of birds and considerable variety of marine life (such as sea anemones, corals, mollusks, crustaceans, echinoderms and sea turtles) were recorded. This list is, however, far from being comprehensive (Quek, 1998).
Again in November 1985, the – MNS, Penang Branch in a memorandum to the Structure Plan Unit advocated that Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve be designated as a national park in the Penang Island Structure Plan (Quek, 1998). Although the state government did nothing about the memorandum, it did recognize the importance of the conservation of PAFR by commissioning two comprehensive studies on “The Penang Environmental Conservation Strategy” and “The Balik Pulau Drainage Study”.
In 1999, the MNS Penang Branch’s executive committee in the monthly meeting proposed to follow up with the Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve proposal of 1985. A fundraising campaign was organized. Programs were organized to collect fund. Finally, in 2000, a scientific expedition was organized at the park.
Despite its small size, Penang National Park processes some unique characteristics. Among them, its diversity of ecological habitats, the rich fauna and the number of unique flora found. The Penang National Park is one of the few remaining areas on Penang Island which still comprises natural rainforest and small mammals. It offers a wide variety of ecosystem from mangrove to sandy beach, rocky coastal lowland and dipterocarp hill forest.
In 1959, the then Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve was first proposed to be gazetted as a national park or state park initiated by a group known as Committee for the Preservation of Areas of Natural Beauty, Pulau Pinang (Quek, 1998).
In an official memorandum in 1976, the MNS, Penang Branch requested the state government of Penang to elevate Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve to that of a national park.
Between October to November 1978, the MNS, Penang Branch with the collaboration with School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia(USM) conducted a natural resources survey on the park. In that brief survey; 25 species of mammals, 53 species of butterflies, 46 species of birds and considerable variety of marine life (such as sea anemones, corals, mollusks, crustaceans, echinoderms and sea turtles) were recorded. This list is, however, far from being comprehensive (Quek, 1998).
Again in November 1985, the – MNS, Penang Branch in a memorandum to the Structure Plan Unit advocated that Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve be designated as a national park in the Penang Island Structure Plan (Quek, 1998). Although the state government did nothing about the memorandum, it did recognize the importance of the conservation of PAFR by commissioning two comprehensive studies on “The Penang Environmental Conservation Strategy” and “The Balik Pulau Drainage Study”.
In 1999, the MNS Penang Branch’s executive committee in the monthly meeting proposed to follow up with the Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve proposal of 1985. A fundraising campaign was organized. Programs were organized to collect fund. Finally, in 2000, a scientific expedition was organized at the park.
Photo showed the expedition team.
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