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Background

The Joint Research Project on Rehabilitation of Tropical Rainforest Ecosystem was initiated in July 1991 by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Yokohama National University, Japan (YNU) with sponsorship from Mitsubishi Corporation. The project is based on the success of restoration of native forest land in Japan and results of some field surveys conducted in the different forests of South East Asian countries since 1978. The scientific basis of this project is based on the concept of vegetation association by Prof. Akira Miyawaki from Yokohama National University.

The objectives of the project are to assess the health of rehabilitated forest through interdisciplinary approach to quantitavely and qualitatively measure the indicators of forest health, hence the sustainability of forest resources. More specifically, this project aims to conduct and integrate research findings in areas such as soil science, plant physiology, water science, biodiversity (terrestrial floral, wildlife,  aquatic flora and fauna, insect and microbes) and microclimatic conditions to indicate the health of the rehabilitated forest.

The project was initiated in UPM Bintulu campus Sarawak (Phase 1) at a 47.5 ha site (Figure 1 and Plate 1). As of 2010, a total of over 350,000 seedlings were planted representing 128 species native to Sarawak. In addition, 100 research plots were established in the rehabilitated area. The project initiated at Bintulu, Sarawak is an excellent example of a highly successful forest rehabilitation project on degraded area.

In July 2008, a new agreement between UPM and Mitsubishi Corporation was signed to establish a model planted forest of indigenous tree species in an urban setting at UPM main campus Serdang, Selangor (Figure 2). The 2^nd phase of the project was launched on 26 November 2008 covering a total area of 27 ha. To date, a total of 13500 seedlings representing 136 species have been planted.

Figure 1 : Location of the rehabilitated forest in UPM Bintulu campus, Sarawak	Figure 2 : Location of the rehabilitated forest in UPM Serdang, Selangor