Evaluation on the local residents’ perception on environmental impacts of coastal tourism development in Teluk batik, Perak, Malaysia

Abstract

Coastal area is identified as an area where there is an interface between law and ocean. Hence, the recent changes in size, composition and distribution on coastal area pertaining to development shall directly affect the surrounding regions due to the changes in land use and land protection. An instant is the Teluk Batik beach, located at the west coast of the state of Perak at about 6.5KM away from the town of Lumut. In this particular beach, there were threats related to erosion and water pollution throughout a stretch of 2 kilometers along the coast, which is due to development of hotels, housing and new industry initiated by the state Government of Perak. It is important to note that the disposal of development effluents into a marine environment is quite alarming, in which this research had identified a list of potential a list of potential negative impacts that can be associated with the discharge of outfall. The impacts will largely experienced by the marine habitats and the physical properties of the seawater itself.in solution, a questionnaire survey was conducted as part of this research study to collect some information from the teluk batik residents, where a total of 201 questionnaires were distributed to the local population. Based on the detailed observation of the water samples and erosion specimens, interview were conducted with the representative from Department of Environment, Municipal of Manjung, and Department of Irrigation and Drainage. The analyses conducted on the perception of local residents towards the coastal development actually revealed that large-scale (Mean of 3.85) of the residents agreed that the development had negatively affected the flora and fauna in Teluk Batik. Besides that, the findings also concluded that the water quality of Teluk Batik is unsafe for body contact, because the E.coli rate had exceeded the threshold limit for safe zone. Furthermore, the erosion rate at Teluk Batik coastal area was classified as category 2, which will directly influence the public property and/or land valuation within the period of 5 to 10 years, unless an effective solution is immediately implement. In ultimatum, this study had generated a proposal or guidelines for Teluk Batik to achieve a sustainable environment during the development phase.