LENGGONG: Perak Ruler Sultan Nazrin Shah officially declared Lenggong as a geopark and unveiled the Lenggong Geopark Gallery on Saturday (March 9).
Accompanying him were the Raja Permaisuri of Perak Tuanku Zara Salim, Raja Muda of Perak Raja Jaafar Raja Muda Musa, Raja Puan Besar of Perak Raja Nazhatul Shima Idris Shah, and Raja DiHilir of Perak Raja Iskandar Dzurkarnain Idris Shah.
Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad and Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad were also present at the ceremony.
In his address, Nik Nazmi highlighted that declaring Lenggong as a geopark is part of the efforts to protect nature’s sustainability and manage areas of national significance with exceptional geosite value.
He mentioned that the ministry has always backed conservation initiatives and has recognized 11 sites as national geoparks in the past seven years through various departments and committees.
The geosites identified include Jerai and Lembah Kinta in 2017, Labuan and Lenggong in 2021, Gombak-Hulu Langat, Stong, and Sarawak Delta in 2022, and Kenyir, Perlis, and Lipis in 2023.
Nik Nazmi stated that Malaysia boasts two Unesco Global Geoparks – Langkawi since 2007 and Kinabalu since 2023.
Furthermore, the Ministry has allocated RM4 million to the Perak Minerals and Geosciences Department from the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021-2023) for geological studies and research in Lenggong.
An additional RM1.1 million has been provided through the Small-Scale Projects under the Strategic Programme to Enhance the People and Economy (Pemerkasa) to enhance the infrastructure at Lenggong Geopark.
The Lenggong Geopark Gallery commenced operations on December 16 last year and has welcomed 2,500 visitors as of February – Bernama
