Quick Summary of Findings - MAHSA Students' Survey

Quick Summary of the Findings from the Students’ Survey:

A small team of students from the Faculty of Denistry in MAHSA University ran a survey among visitor to the Kanching Recreational Forest.  Here is a quick summary of what they found out.

Findings On the Park:

·       Most visitors did not know the existence of Taman Warisan Negeri Selangor as a whole or that Sungai Kanching belonged to Taman Warisan Negeri Selangor before agreeing to participate in our survey. Most of them knew that Sungai Kanching was a recreational park. Some of them thought that Sungai Kanching was Templer Park.

·       Before the survey, most visitors did not know that Taman Warisan Negeri Selangor was a major water catchment area for a large area of Selangor even though they knew some of the dams.

·       Most visitors did know that is it important to protect our forests.

Findings On Cleanliness of Park areas:

·       Regarding rubbish disposal, collecting the rubbish and disposing them back at home was preferred by the most number of visitors followed by packing up the rubbish and disposing them into the provided rubbish bins at entrance area, not near waterfall. It is also noteworthy that some visitors complain of monkeys ransacking the rubbish bins provided.

·       Most visitors are well aware that improper disposal of waste can lead the diseases, especially leptospirosis.

·       Most visitors agreed that there were lots of rubbish in the picnic areas even though rubbish bins were provided.

In conclusion, most visitors did not know about the existence of Taman Warisan Negeri Selangor, but most seemed to think it is important to protect the forest.  Most visitors stated that a good solution to the rubbish problem would be to pack your rubbish and take it home with you, yet there is still a lot of rubbish, leading us to believe that very few people follow their own advice.

Suggestions to Improve the Park:

1.  Set up more sign boards with directions to guide visitors during their hike.
2. Advise visitor not to feed the monkeys, which would attract more of them. Moreover, feeding the monkeys make them to be fearless of humans.
3. The authorities should fine people who litter and pollute the river.
4. The authorities should be strict on the act of visitors of Sg. Kanching.
5.  The authorities can educate people who visit Sg. Kanching to dispose their trash properly.
6.  The authorities should set up a deposit system for rubbish, like at Taman Negera.  If you bring out your rubbish, you will get your cash deposit back.
7. Clean up the mud to free up spaces for visitors to park their cars.