Tioman Island () is , off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, more specifically off the east coast of Rompin District, Pahang, Malaysia. It is long and wide and has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung Tekek on the central western coast. The densely forested island is sparsely inhabited, and is surrounded by numerous , making it a popular scuba diving, snorkelling, and surfing spot. There are many resorts and chalets for tourists around the island, which has duty-free status.
The island is accessed via ferry service from the coastal town of Mersing and Teluk Gading, as well as by air, run by a regular private service from Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (formerly Subang International Airport) in Selangor.
In more recent history, Tioman played host to both the United Kingdom and the navies during the Second World War. As a result, the waters around the island are littered with war remains, including HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales.
Tioman island does not allow buildings to have more than three stories. Tioman Island is to be granted municipality status soon.
Apart from its diverse marine life, the inland rainforest area was protected in 1972 as the Pulau Tioman Wildlife Reserve. However, a large part of the original reserve was sacrificed for agricultural and touristic development in 1984; the remaining area is approximately . There are several protected species of mammals on the island, including the binturong, long-tailed macaque, slow loris, black giant squirrel, red giant flying squirrel, chevrotain, brush-tailed porcupine, and common palm civet, from a total of 45 species of mammals and 138 species of birds, including the majestic frigatebird. Moreover, Tioman has species that are endemic to its shores. The Tioman walking catfish Clarias batu can be seen on rainforest walks. Kajang slender litter frog is only known from Mount Kajang.
A proposal to build an international airport on Tioman Island which were rejected by authorities in 2018 due to the scale of the environmental impacts it would cause are still very much in the works as an environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the project has been submitted. The new airport would cover 186.4 hectares (460.6 acres) of the island's west coast between the villages of Kampung Paya and Kampung Genting. 76% of the development area would need to be land reclaimed from the sea (142.70 hectares) within Pulau Tioman Marine Park, according to the EIA report. Impacts on the marine environment cited in the EIA report include direct destruction of coral reefs and coastal habitats, underwater construction noise, pollutant runoff, artificial lighting, and plumes of silt and sediment. The development could displace local businesses, extinguish tourism revenue in two of the island's seven villages, and have cascading effects on the island's already limited natural resource.
The EIA report suggests carrying out a marine conservation and rehabilitation plan, which involves relocating and propagating corals to four designated sites and two coral farms before any construction begins. While the relocation of corals may appear to be a measure to protect these fragile organisms, it is important to examine the drawbacks and limitations of this approach. Relocating corals from their natural habitats to new sites can have an adverse effect on their survival and the ecosystems they support. Transplanted corals often struggle to adapt to new conditions, leading to a high mortality rate. The disturbance caused by relocation can disrupt the balance of the ecosystem and result in long-term ecological consequences.
The EIA report states that 54% of 300 island residents surveyed about the development viewed the development positively. However, the report concedes that many respondents were residents of Kampung Tekek, a village in the northern, most developed part of the island, far from the development footprint and close to a large resort linked to the project developer. In contrast, representatives surveyed from the affected villages of Kampung Genting and Kampung Paya typically held a negative view of the airport proposal.
The EIA report was prepared by Asia Pacific Environmental Consultants Sdn. Bhd. for Tioman Infra Sdn. Bhd., a subsidiary part-owned by the Berjaya Group, a Malaysia-based corporation that also operates a resort on the island. The project developer is Tioman Infra Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tioman Hill Resort Sdn Bhd which is 50% owned by Berjaya Group. The rest is owned by the royal family of Pahang through Aimvesco Sdn Bhd and the late Sultan Ahmad Shah.
are becoming increasingly common around the island, harming local wildlife.
Popular Dive and Snorkeling Sites off the coast of Tulai/Coral Island
A proposal to build an international airport through land reclamation was rejected in 2018 on environmental grounds, although the proposal has been raised since.
Currently (May 2024) there are no commercial flights to Pulau Tioman, and discussions of an airport expansion are still on-going.
1. Bluewater Ferry - bluewater.my
2. Cata Ferry - cataferry.com
3. Jetty Location - Google Map
Local mythology claims that the island is the embodiment of the mighty dragon Sri Gumom. The dragon was on his way to visit his sister Gunung Linga (Lingin Peak). Still, the great Sri Rama forbade the meeting, and Sri Gumom was turned into a stone and fell into the deep sea where he now remains, frozen in eternity as this beautiful island with its distinctive topography.
Local:
/ref> 326 species of coral reef fish from 55 families including the endangered humphead wrasse, vulnerable blacktip reef shark, slender bambooshark, tawny nurse shark, brown-marbled grouper, squaretail coral grouper, finless sleeper ray, Jenkin's whipray and the near threatened blackspot tuskfish and Bower'
/ref> The mangrove forests, a total of 59.90 hectares, support 23 mangrove species including a new hybrid species, one endangered species (Heritiera globose) which can be found near Kampung Genting and Kampung Juara and two near threatened species (Ceriops decandra and Sonneratia ovata) which can be found near Kampung Juara.
Impacts
Tourist attractions
Tioman Island
Around Tioman
Climate
Politics
Non-governmental organisations
Transportation
Air
Water
Legend
Radio and television
Radio
From Malaysian mainland:
Television
See also
External links
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