Sabah now looking at long-term elephant conflict solution

The six-week elephant invasion in one of Sabah’s interior districts has compelled state authorities to look into long-term solutions that can prevent such human-wildlife conflicts in the future.

Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said the conflict has become a major cause of concern that has to be addressed in the long term.

“I have asked the director of wildlife to give a briefing this week. We recognise the fact that it’s a real problem and we are going to discuss the options available to us,” he said.

A herd of about 20 elephants caused damage to crops and human property in some 10 villages around the Telupid district, while others have reportedly casually strolled through school grounds and wandered into the district police station.

The Sabah Wildlife Department and Wildlife Rescue Unit have been on a 24-hour watch trying to ensure that the animals do not come into close contact with humans.

Wildlife Rescue Unit acting manager Diana Ramirez said that they have so far captured six elephants as of now that are meant for relocation in a wildlife reserve.

“I think the fact that all these incidents that happened in the last one week or month should make us think hard about the options that are available to us, not only to solve it now, but for the long term,” said Masidi.

“All of us the stakeholders need to sit down and work out the solutions. We can’t forever be doing things on an ad hoc basis,” he said, adding that the authorities will meet later this week to discuss the matter before bringing in the stakeholders.

Another challenge is the high cost of translocation at RM20,000 to RM30,000 per elephant.

Elephant and human conflict has been on the rise in recent years as Sabah’s vast forests have been converted into agricultural land or opened up to development.

Biologists predicted the increase in such conflict but little has been done to create wildlife corridors for elephants and other animals which are used to roaming freely over large areas without restriction.

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