View: It’s time to ban farming of swiftlets

Friday August 28, 2009

THE mushrooming and highly-lucrative swiftlet nests industry in peninsular Malaysia has led to public complaints without much response from the authorities.

The situation is bad as most of the swiftlet farms are located in shoplots and commercial areas.

Noisy recorders are installed to lure the swallows from dawn till late at night, causing disturbances to those living in the surrounding areas. The noise pollution is something the people in residential areas has to tolerate daily and it would be most annoying when exposed to the noise for days on end.

Under the local council guidelines, the loudspeakers should be positioned 60 degrees upwards and broadcasts of bird noises should not exceed 40 decibels, but the noise comes daily from 7am to late at night and it is the long exposure to this noise that upsets the public.

Regarding health hazards, there have been complaints from residents in Seberang Perai who suffered from rashes when insects from the nests come into contact with them.

In another case, hundreds of nearby residents located near a bird hotel in Kuala Terengganu also complained of itchiness, rashes and frequent colds.

Concerns over bird flu have been raised too. SAM would like to know that should bird flu strike, will all the swiftlets be exterminated during an outbreak?

Bird droppings will hasten the destruction of building materials, interior ornamentation and embellishments and mars the beautiful façade of heritage buildings. Moisture in an enclosed environment will also cause decay to timber ceilings, brick walls and plaster.

SAM expresses concern over the actual harvesting of the nests by collectors, the methods used and timing of harvests. Nests are removed when these are supposed to be left for the brood, depriving the birds of a chance to raise their young. So far, harvesting patterns of home farming of swiftlets are not well-documented by the authorities.

A question raised is whether there is any monitoring by the Wildlife Department during harvesting to ensure no killing of fledgelings.

In view of these problems, SAM would like to call for a ban on all farming of swiftlets. All species of swiftlets should be made totally protected under Schedule I of the Protection of Wildlife Act to prevent further exploitation of the birds' nests.

S.M. MOHD IDRIS,

President, Sahabat Alam Malaysia.

This article was taken from: The Star Online: Opinion 28 August 2009