The use of remote sensing for monitoring spatial and temporal changes in mangrove management

Mangroves are important in protecting shorelines against tidal waves and erosion. Since the mangrove forests in the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve (MMFR), Perak, Malaysia are managed with sustainable objectives, spatial information on the mangroves needs to be acquired and updated from time to time. This paper describes the application of SPOT 4 satellite images for mapping mangrove forest extent and quantifying temporal changes within a 10-year period (1989-2000) in Kuala Trong, Perak of MMFR. Multi temporal SPOT 4 images of 1989 and 2000 were enhanced and classified using Erdas image processing software. Digital change detection technique was applied on both images and the magnitude of changes in mangrove region was analysed. Secondary data on the mangrove was obtained from the Forestry Department Peninsular Malaysia and used in the image classification, change detection analysis and field verification processes. Results showed that the mangrove forest at Kuala Trong, MMFR can be classified into five classes: excellent, good, poor, dryland and damaged forests. The overall image classification accuracy obtained was more than 70%. Remote sensing is an effective tool for mangrove monitoring in MMFR

Analysis of crown spectral characteristic and tree species mapping of tropical forest using hyperspectral imaging.

Airborne hyperspectral remote sensing in Malaysia is relatively new. The advantage of hyperspectral remote sensing over satellite remote sensing is its ability to take high spatial resolution images. In this study, hyperspectral data were used for classification of individual tree crowns in a tropical rainforest. Field spectroradiometer and airborne hyperspectral reflectance spectra (288 bands, 500-850 nm) were acquired from eight species of emergent tree crown in Gunung Stong Forest Reserve, Kelantan, Peninsular Malaysia. Analyses focused on tree crown spectra in a 5 ha plot. Firstly, the spectral characteristic of the tree crown was developed. Next, spectral-based species classifications were performed using spectral angle mapper (SAM) classifiers. Optimal regions of the spectrum for species discrimination varied with scale. Near-infrared (700-850 nm) bands were consistently important regions across all scales. However, the band in the visible region (537-700 nm) was also important at crown scales. This study concluded that high spectral and spatial resolution imagery acquired over tree crown canopy of tropical forest has substantial potential for individual tree species mapping

Historical and current legislations of Taman Negara National Park Peninsular Malaysia

The study was conducted to discuss the historical and current legislation pertaining to the establishment and administration of the Taman Negara National Park, Peninsular Malaysia. Established in 1938 and 1939 as King George V National Park, the park was named Taman Negara National Park after independent in 1957. Estimated to be 130 million years old and with an area of 4,343 sq kilometers, the highest mountain in the peninsular, Gunung Tahan (2,187 meter) is allocated in the area. Taman Negara National Park is a combination of three protected areas in three states, Taman Negara Pahang National Park, Taman Negara Kelantan National Park and Taman Negara Terengganu National Park. Currently all the three states has its own legislation, namely Taman Negara Enactment (Pahang) No.2, 1939 [En.2 of 1938], Taman Negara Enactment (Kelantan) No.14, 1938 [En.14 of 1938] and Taman Negara Enactment (Terengganu) No.6, 1939 [En.6 of 1358]. In Malaysia, some laws are federal legislation. Others are state enactments. Not all legislation enacted will apply to the whole Peninsular, the state of Sabah and Sarawak. To provide for the establishment and control of National Parks and for matters connected herewith, the Federal National Parks Act (Act 226) was introduced in 1980. This federal act shall not apply to the three states. Since this is the constitutional position, constraints especially on uniformity of laws either to promote or enforced, particularly in respect matters stated and List 1 Federal List (Ninth Schedule of Article 74, 77 Legislative Lists), List II – State List (Article 95B (1) (a) and List III – Concurrent List (Article 95B (1) (b) often exists. Thus, there are some matters which the National Parks fall under the legislative authority of both the Federal and State Governments. However, forestry and land fall under the jurisdiction and legislative authority of the state in accordance with the Concurrent List of the Ninth Schedule. The areas of jurisdiction of Federal and State Governments as defined in the Constitution lead to non-uniform implementation of rules and regulations between states. The objective of this paper is to review the laws and legislation pertaining to the management of the National Park in Peninsular Malaysia. Specifically the constraints arises between the federal and states jurisdiction toward the management of land and conservation of the protected area

Fatty acid, triacylglycerol compositions, and crystalline structure of bambangan (mangifera pajang) seed fat extracted using different solvent

Nowadays, research on the bambangan fruit waste (seed) has become an interest because of its potential application as a cocoa butter alternative. This work aimed to determine the changes in the quality of the extracted bambangan seed fat (BSF) obtained from hexane, petroleum ether, and ethanol. The total fat content (TFC), physicochemical properties, fatty acid profiles, triacylglycerol composition, and crystalline structure of the extracted BSF were all affected by the extraction solvents. The results showed that BSF has a high content of 1,3-distreoyl-2-oleoyl-glycerol (SOS) of 30.22 – 44.29 %. The solvent type significantly (p<0.05) impacts the stearic and oleic acids of the extracts, resulting in the apparent changes in the high melting symmetrical triacylglycerols such as the SOS. Petroleum ether extracted BSF has high stearic acid of 33.40 %, followed by the hexane and ethanol extracted BSF of 29.29 % and 27.84 % respectively. Moreover, the spherulitic microstructure with needle-like crystals of the extracts also ranging from 30 to 70 μm diameters. Hexane extracted BSF illustrated a less dense spherulitic crystalline micro-structure with a less granular centre than those extracted using the other solvents. The results suggested that the quality of the extracted BSF obtained from non-polar solvent of hexane and petroleum ether is better than the polar solvent (ethanol)

Mangrove carbon stock assessment by optical satellite imagery

Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve or known as Matang Mangroves is the largest single mangroves in Peninsular Malaysia. Covering an area of about 41,000 ha, majority of this area is forest reserve. Mangroves have long been known as extremely productive ecosystem that cycle carbon (C) rapidly, but studies related to carbon in this ecosystem are limited. This study was carried out to assess the carbon stock and quantify their changes following deforestation, wood extraction and forest degradation. Landsat-TM and SPOT-5 satellite images for 1991 and 2011 respectively were utilised to identify mangroves. Vegetation index generated from the images was used as a variable to indicate carbon stock and it was correlated to forest inventory information through regression. The study showed that carbon stocks of Matang Mangroves ranged from 1.03 to 263.65 t C ha-1 and 1.01 to 259.68 t C ha-1 for the years 1991 and 2011 respectively. Total carbon stock in Matang Mangroves was estimated at about 3.04 mil t C in year 1991 and 2.15 mil t C in 2011. The study suggested that the traditional use of vegetation index from optical imagery systems is still relevant and viable in vegetative studies

Physicochemical and functional properties of cassava flour grown in different locations in Sabah, Malaysia

The tuber of cassava is used as raw materials in the bakery, food, pharmaceutical and garment industries. The nutritional value of cassava roots is important because they are the main part of the plant consumed in developing countries. However, there is much variation in the nutrient quality of the cassava root depends on the several factors, such as geographic location, variety, age of the plant, and environmental conditions. This study was performed to compare and provide information on physicochemical and functional properties of cassava flour planted in two different districts in Sabah, Malaysia, namely Tawau and Semporna. Proximate analysis showed significant differences (p<0.05) in crude protein (2.07 and 2.69%), crude fat (0.55 and 0.68%) and dietary fibre contents (2.38 and 2.09%). Determinations on physicochemical and functional characteristics of the cassava flour showed significant differences (p<0.05) in bulk density (0.57 and 0.79 g/ cm3 ), pH (6.75 and 6.72), colour and foam capacity (3.66 and 7.33%) while there was no significant difference shown in water and oil absorption capacities as well as emulsion capacity. Cassava planted in Semporna was observed to have high values of all pasting property parameters relative to the one planted in Tawau except for the setback viscosity. Gelatinization properties of flours showed significant differences (p<0.05) in onset (70.59 and 68.99°C) and end temperatures (79.81 and 80.03°C)

Ramification of gum arabic microencapsulation on the physicochemical and microbiological properties of butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) flowers using ultrasonic spray dryer

Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) flower is commonly used to treat various diseases andhas long been part of the science of phytomedicines. Ultrasonic assisted extraction technique is a simple, cheap and efficient alternative to traditional extraction methods, producing a much smaller particle size than conventional spray drier. This study was aimed to evaluate the physicochemical and microbiological properties of microencapsulated butterfly pea flower (MEBP) powder prepared using ultrasonic spraying technique. The samples were microencapsulated with different amount of Gum Arabic (GA) (0, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10%). Surface morphology of the MEBP powder was examined using SEM showed different molecular structures in different MEBP powder.FTIR analysis identified phenolic hydroxyl group (1061.69 cm-1 and 3385.36 cm-1), sulfite group (1062.01 cm-1, 1065.92 cm-1, 1077.15 cm-1, 1234.72 cm-1and 1261.74 cm-1) and amide group (1635.99 cm-1 , 1636.74 cm-1 , 1654.14 cm-1 and 3417.2 cm-1). 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), thiobarbituric acid (TBA), total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC) found to be ranging from 35.85±0.57 to 130.85±3.00 mg GAE/g dried sample, 4.32±0.04 to 6.90±0.11 mg QE/g dried sample, respectively. It was found that Bacillus cereus was sensitive to MEBP powder as the results showed a prominent inhibition zone (5.67±0.6 mm to 11.67±2.3 mm). MEBP produced with GA 6% ultrasonic spray drier was found to be effective in sustaining its antioxidative activities and the microbial activities were found to be active. This result provided useful information data on the best technique to use ultrasonic spray dryer to retain antioxidant compounds

Physicochemical properties of tarap (Artocarpus adoratisimus) starch

The objective of the research was to investigate the physicochemical characteristics of Tarap fruit starch. In this study, young Tarap fruit starch was extracted and the percentage of total starch, resistant starch, amylose and amylopectin were determined. Scanning electron microscope was used to evaluate the morphological features of the starch granule. Swelling, pasting, gelatinization, retrogradation and in vitro digestibility were also investigated. A total of 17.85% starch was successfully extracted from unripe Tarap fruit, whereas the amount of total starch and resistant starch were 89.14% and 47.82%, respectively. The amounts of rapid digestible starch and slowly digestible starch were 6.58% and 23.25%, respectively. Results found that the amylopectin content was higher than amylose (77.15% and 11.97%). The starch granules were round and polygon in shapes with smooth surfaces. The average of starch granules size was range from 6.50 to 8.30 μm with 7.4 μm of mean granule diameter. Pasting properties showed that peak viscosity was observed at about 6.5 min at 73.5oC. Tarap starch gelatinization temperatures (onset, 71.63°C; peak, 74.56°C; conclusion, 78.24°C) and enthalpy of gelatinization (ΔHgel) (3.74 J/g) were higher while the retrograded starches show lower retrogradation temperature and enthalpy than native starches. Unripe Tarap starch showed good potential to be utilized as adhesives and thickener for industrial applications

Effect of solvent pre-treatment on the physicochemical, thermal profiles and morphological behavior of mangifera pajang seed fat

In this work, the effect of solvent pre-treatment (hexane, petroleum ether and ethanol) on the physicochemical, thermal and morphology behavior of Mangifera pajang seed fat (MPSF) were investigated. The results showed that the yield, physicochemical, and crystalline structures of the MPSF were significantly (p<0.05) influenced by the extraction solvents. Hexane gave the highest fat yield (7.67%) with low unsaturation value (52.13 g iodine/g) compared with petroleum ether and ethanol. Hexane MPSF also had low oxidation rate (peroxide value of 1.1 mEq/g). Both non-stabilized and stabilized hexane MPSF showed a single melting endothermic peak at high temperature with onset, maximum peak and offset temperature of 16.23 ˚C-18.21 ˚C, 28.22 ˚C-31.25 ˚C and 34.85 ˚C-39.58 ˚C, respectively. Hexane MPSF crystallized rapidly at high temperature with single maximum peak starting at 16.51 ˚C-16.68 ˚C and ending at 0.23 ˚C-1.13 ˚C. In comparison with ethanol extract, hexane MPSF demonstrated a compact crystalline structure with a large densely packed center. MPSF exhibited similar melting and morphological behavior to mango kernel fat and commercial cocoa butter. These results suggested that hexane was the best solvent for the extraction of MPSF. This fat also has the potential to be applied as a cocoa butter alternative fat