PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

Kuala Lumpur (KL), a capital city of Malaysia has experienced significant development that has led to the fragmentation of urban green spaces. Even though green infrastructure (GI) may address the problem of green space fragmentation, there is a notable gap in the extent to which the existing policies and regulations support the development of GI in KL. Hence, a set of policies and regulations pertaining to GI patch and corridor establishment in KL is reviewed in this study. In total, 77 documents related to policies and regulations that might contribute to GI establishment spatially were studied using thematic analysis. Next, the identified GI elements were themed together based on policies and regulations. The outcomes revealed that most policies and regulations focused on patches with 15 categories, followed by corridors (three categories) and components (one category). A typology of Malaysia’s GI from the policies and regulations is prescribed in this study. The reported findings may catalyse GI planning and establishment in KL for a more sustainable future.

• Ahern, J. (1995). Greenways as a planning strategy. Landscape and Urban Planning, 33(1–3), 131-155. https://doi.org/10.1016/0169-2046(95)02039-V

• Ahern, J. (2007). Green infrastructure for cities: The spatial dimension. In V. Novotny & B. Paul (Eds.), Cities of the future towards integrated sustainable (pp. 271). IWA Publishing.

• Alfa, M., & Reza, M. (2012). Sustainability of urban cemeteries and the transformation of Malay burial practices in Kuala Lumpur metropolitan region. World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology, 71, 538-558. https://www.waset.org/journals/waset/v71.php

• Alias, A., Ali, A. S., & Othman, K. N. (2014). Land development on high land areas: Comparison of process implementation and legislation effectiveness between Malaysia and Hong Kong. World Journal of Engineering and Technology, 2(3), 55-60. https://doi.org/10.4236/wjet.2014.23b009

• Aziz, H. A., & Rasidi, M. H. (2014). The role of green corridors for wildlife conservation in urban landscape: A literature review. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 18(1). https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/18/1/012093

• Azwar, D. H., & Izham, G. (2009). The importance of green space: Towards a quality living environment in urban areas. International Journal o f Architectural Research, 3(1). 245-262

• Bartesaghi Koc, C., Osmond, P., & Peters, A. (2017). Towards a comprehensive green infrastructure typology: A systematic review of approaches, methods and typologies. Urban Ecosystems, 20(1), 15-35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-016-0578-5

• Benedict, M. A., & McMahon, E. T. (2006). Green Infrastructure: Linking Landscapes and Communities. (pp. 24). Island Press.

• Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

• Carter, T., & Fowler, L. (2008). Establishing green roof infrastructure through environmental policy instruments. Environmental Management, 42(1), 151-164. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-008-9095-5

• Dall’Ara, E., Maino, E., Gatta, G., Torreggiani, D., & Tassinari, P. (2019). Green mobility Infrastructures. A landscape approach for roundabouts’ gardens applied to an Italian case study. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 37, 109-125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.03.011

• Danjaji, A. S., & Ariffin, M. (2017). Green infrastructure policy for sustainable urban development. International Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development, 16(2), 112-127. https://doi.org/10.1504/ijesd.2017.10004010

• Dardak, R. A. (2015). Transformation of agricultural sector in Malaysia Through agricultural policy. FFTC Agricultural Policy Database, 237, 2–5.

• Davies, C., Macfarlane, R., & Roe, M. (2006). Green infrastructure planning guide. Urban Environmental Education Review. https://doi.org/10.5822/978-1-61091-693-6_1

• de la Fuente, B., Mateo-Sánchez, M. C., Rodríguez, G., Gastón, A., Pérez de Ayala, R., Colomina-Pérez, D., Melero, M., & Saura, S. (2018). Natura 2000 sites, public forests and riparian corridors: The connectivity backbone of forest green infrastructure. Land Use Policy, 75, 429-441. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.04.002

• Deak, J., & Bucht, E. (2011). Planning for climate change: The role of indigenous blue infrastructure, with a case study in Sweden. Town Planning Review, 82(6), 669-685. https://doi.org/10.3828/tpr.2011.38

• Dhakal, K. P., & Chevalier, L. R. (2017). Managing urban stormwater for urban sustainability: Barriers and policy solutions for green infrastructure application. Journal of Environmental Management, 203, 171–181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.07.065

• Environmental Protection Agency. (2015). Green infrastructure opportunities that arise during municipal operations. Office of Wetlands, Oceans and WatershedsNational Estuary Program. https://www.epa.gov/nep/green-infrastructure-opportunities-arise-during-municipal-operations.

• Eriksson, F., Eriksson, T., & Ignatieva, M. (2015). Golf courses as a part of urban green infrastructure: social aspect of golf courses and extensively managed turfgrass areas from Nordic perspective. 52nd World Congress of International Fedration of Landscape Architect. http://www.sterf.org/Media/Get/2898/golf-courses-as-a-part-of-urban-green-infrastructure-social-aspects.pdf

• Federal Department of Town and Country Planning. (2016). National physical plan 3. https://myplan.planmalaysia.gov.my/www/admin/uploads_publication/rancangan-fizikal-negara-ke-3-chapter-7-en-31102020.pdf

• Feng, S., Hou, W., & Chang, J. (2019). Changing coal mining brownfields into green infrastructure based on ecological potential assessment in Xuzhou, Eastern China. Sustainability, 11(8). 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11082252

• Forman, R. (1995). Some general principles of landscape and regional ecology. Landscape Ecology, 10(3), 133–142. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00133027

• Gałecka-Drozda, A., & Raszeja, E. (2018). Useful wasteland - The potential of undeveloped land in modification of urban green infrastructure based on the city of Poznań. Miscellanea Geographica, 22(4), 225-230. https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2018-0016

• Girma, Y., Terefe, H., Pauleit, S., & Kindu, M. (2019). Urban green infrastructure planning in Ethiopia: The case of emerging towns of Oromia special zone surrounding Finfinne. Journal of Urban Management, 8(1), 75–88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jum.2018.09.004

• Greater London Authority. (2008). East London Green Grid Framework. https://www.queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk/-/media/lldc/local-plan/local-plan-examination-documents/regional-planning-policy-documents/rp9-spgeastlongreengrid.ashx?la=en

• Hasan, R., Othman, N., & Ahmad, R. (2016). Tree Preservation Order and its role in enhancing the quality of life. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 222, 493-501. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.05.140

• Ibrahim, P. H., Dali, M. M., & Yusoff, S. M. (2014). Implementation of open space: The need for uniform policy? Open House International, 39(1), 82-91. https://doi.org/10.5539/jsd.v6n7p16

• Iojă, C. I., Grădinaru, S. R., Onose, D. A., Vânău, G. O., & Tudor, A. C. (2014). The potential of school green areas to improve urban green connectivity and multifunctionality. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 13(4), 704-713. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2014.07.002

• Jerome, G. (2017). Defining community-scale green infrastructure. Landscape Research, 42(2), 223-229. https://doi.org/10.1080/01426397.2016.1229463

• Jusoff, K. (2013). Malaysian mangrove forests and their significance to the coastal marine environment. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 22(4), 979-1005.

• Kanniah, K. D. (2017). Quantifying green cover change for sustainable urban planning: A case of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 27, 287–304. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2017.08.016

• Kanniah, K. D., & Ho, C. S. (2017). Urban forest cover change and sustainability of Malaysian cities. Chemical Engineering Transactions, 56, 673-678. https://doi.org/10.3303/CET1756113

• Kilbane, S. (2013). Green infrastructure: Planning a national green network for Australia. Journal of Landscape Architecture, 8(1), 64-73. https://doi.org/10.1080/18626033.2013.798930

• Kowarik, I., Buchholz, S., von der Lippe, M., & Seitz, B. (2016). Biodiversity functions of urban cemeteries: Evidence from one of the largest Jewish cemeteries in Europe. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 19, 68-78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2016.06.023

• Latip, N. S. A., Heath, T., Shamsuddin, S., Liew, M. S., & Vallyutham, K. (2010). The contextual integration and sustainable development of Kuala Lumpur’s City Centre waterfront: An evaluation of the policies, law and guidelines. International Conference on Sustainable Building and Infrastructure, Part of The World Engineering, Science and Technology Congress (2010), 1-7. http://irep.iium.edu.my/3101/

• Lewinson, A. S. (2007). Viewing postcolonial Dar es Salaam, Tanzania through civic spaces: A question of class. African Identities, 5(2), 199-215. https://doi.org/10.1080/14725840701403457

• Manaff, A. I. N. A., Muhammad, N. S., & Abdullah, J. (2020). Multivariate statistical assessment of Klang River, Selangor, Malaysia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 476. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/476/1/012121

• Marzukhi, M. A., Karim, H. A., & Latfi, M. F. (2012). Evaluating the Shah Alam City Council policy and guidelines on the hierarchy of neighborhood open space. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 36, 456–465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2012.03.050

• Mat Nazir, N. N., Othman, N., & Nawawi, A. H. (2014). Green infrastructure and its roles in enhancing quality of life. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 153, 384-394. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.10.071

• Mell, I., Allin, S., Reimer, M., & Wilker, J. (2017). Strategic green infrastructure planning in Germany and the UK: A transnational evaluation of the evolution of urban greening policy and practice. International Planning Studies, 22(4), 333-349. https://doi.org/10.1080/13563475.2017.1291334

• Mejía, C.V, Shirotova, L., & de Almeida, I. F. M. (2015). Green infrastructure and German landscape planning: A comparison of approaches. Urbani Izziv, 26 (supplement), S25–S37. https://doi.org/10.5379/urbani-izziv-en-2015-26-supplement-002

• Modica, G., Praticò, S., Laudari, L., Ledda, A., Di Fazio, S., & De Montis, A. (2021). Implementation of multispecies ecological networks at the regional scale: Analysis and multi-temporal assessment. Journal of Environmental Management, 289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112494

• Mohd Hashim, N. H., & Hitchmough, J. D. (2015). The comparisons of perceptions among landscape professionals’ on tree retention and legislation article information. International Academic Research Journal of Social Science, 1(2), 164-176.

• Ndubisi, F., DeMeo, T., & Ditto, N. D. (1995). Environmentally sensitive areas: A template for developing greenway corridors. Landscape and Urban Planning, 33(1–3), 159-177. https://doi.org/10.1016/0169-2046(94)02016-9

• Newman, G. D., Smith, A. L., & Brody, S. D. (2017). Repurposing vacant land through landscape connectivity. Landscape Journal, 36(1), 37-57. https://doi.org/10.3368/lj.36.1.37

• Nizarudin, D. N., Mohd Hussain, M. R., & Tukiman, I. (2012). The importance and involvement of landscape architecture in the green building index (GBI) practice. 1st International Conference on Innovation and Technology for Sustainable Built Environment 2012 (ICITSBE 2012) . https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282657130_THE_IMPORTANCE_AND_INVOLVEMENT_OF_LANDSCAPE_ARCHITECTURE_IN_THE_GREEN_BUILDING_INDEX_GBI_PRACTICE

• Nor, A. N. M., Corstanje, R., Harris, J. A., & Brewer, T. (2017). Impact of rapid urban expansion on green space structure. Ecological Indicators, 81, 274–284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.05.031

• Nor Akmar, A. A., Konijnendijk, C. C., Sreetheran, M., & Nilsson, K. (2011). Greenspace planning and management in Klang valley, Peninsular Malaysia. Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, 37(3), 99–107. https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.2011.014

• Rasli, F. N., Kanniah, K. D., & Ho, C. S. (2019). Analysis of fragmented green spaces in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Chemical Engineering Transactions, 72, 457–462. https://doi.org/10.3303/CET1972077

• Reza, M., & Abdullah, S. A. (2010). Ecological connectivity framework in the state of Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia : A potential conservation strategy in the rapid changing tropics. Journal of Ecology and Natural Environment, 2, 73–83.

• Russo, A., & Cirella, G. T. (2020). Edible green infrastructure for urban regeneration and food security: Case studies from the campania region. Agriculture, 10(8), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture10080358

• Saldana, J. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers. SAGE Publications Ltd.

• Sanches, P. M., & Pellegrino, P. R. M. (2016). Greening potential of derelict and vacant lands in urban areas. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 19, 128-139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2016.07.002

• Schweitzer, J.-P., & Gionfra, S. (2018). Nature-based education for resilient cities. In U. M. Azeiteiro, M. Akerman, W. Leal Filho, A. Setti, & L. Brandli (Eds.), Lifelong learning and education in healthy and sustainable cities (pp. 355-376). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69474-0_21

• Shi, X., & Qin, M. (2018). Research on the optimization of regional green infrastructure network. Sustainability, 10(12). 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10124649

• Sini, R. (2019). Singapore’s green infrastructure and biophilic urbanism. In Singapore’s park system master planning. Springer Singapore.

• Sreetheran, M., & Adnan, M. (2007). Green network development of Kuala Lumpur city: From the perspective of Kuala Lumpur Structure Plan. Journal of Postgraduate Studies in Architecture, Planning and Landscape, 7, 38-41.

• Stefanakis, A. I. (2019). The role of constructed wetlands as green infrastructure for sustainable urban water management. Sustainability (Switzerland), 11(24). https://doi.org/10.3390/su11246981

• Sukri, N. A. N. M., Ismail, Z., & Ariffin, W. T. W. (2020). Conceptual framework for developing a model of effective tree preservation order (Act 172) implementation in construction projects. International Journal of Sustainable Construction Engineering and Technology, 11(1), 18-30. https://doi.org/10.30880/ijscet.2020.11.01.003

• Tahvonen, O., & Airaksinen, M. (2018). Low-density housing in sustainable urban planning – Scaling down to private gardens by using the green infrastructure concept. Land Use Policy, 75, 478-485. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.04.017

• Tan, T. (2011). Neighborhood preferences of house buyers: the case of Klang Valley, Malaysia. International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis, 4(1), 58-69. https://doi.org/10.1108/17538271111111839

• Thaiutsa, B., Puangchit, L., Kjelgren, R., & Arunpraparut, W. (2008). Urban green space, street tree and heritage large tree assessment in Bangkok, Thailand. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 7(3), 219-229. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2008.03.002

• Tudorie, C. M., Vallés-Planells, M., Gielen, E., & Galiana, F. (2020). Assessing the performance of urban green infrastructure: The case study of benicalap district, Valencia, Spain. WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, 243, 83-95. https://doi.org/10.2495/UA200081

• Ubaidillah, N. Z., Saib, R., Ab-Rahim, R., & Ismail, F. (2018). Tagang system development: the impacts and perception of local communities in Terbat Mawang Village, Sarawak, Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(12), 1203-1222. https://doi.org/10.6007/ijarbss/v8-i12/5192

• United Nations. (2017). World population prospects: The 2017 revision, key findings and advance tables. https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/sites/www.un.org.development.desa.pd/files/files/documents/2020/Jan/un_2017_world_population_prospects-2017_revision_databooklet.pdf

• United Nations. (2019). The future is now: global sustainable development report. https://reliefweb.int/report/world/global-sustainable-development-report-2019-future-now-science-achieving-sustainable

• Uy, P. D., & Nakagoshi, N. (2008). Application of land suitability analysis and landscape ecology to urban greenspace planning in Hanoi, Vietnam. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 7(1), 25-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2007.09.002

• Wu, H., Yang, Y., & Hu, J. (2021). Nurturing nature in a mega-city: A decadal assessment of the Beijing Olympic Forest Park. Socio-Ecological Practice Research, 3(2), 91-108. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42532-021-00076-5

• Yassin, A. B., Bond, S., & Mcdonagh, J. (2011). The effectiveness of the riverfront development guidelines in Malaysia [Paper presentation]. 17th Pacific Rim Real Estate Society Conference. http://www.prres.net/Papers/Azlina_The_Effectiveness_of_the_Riverfront_Development_Guidelines_in_Malaysia (1).pdf

• Yeo, O. T. S., Mohd Yusof, M. J., Maruthaveeran, S., Mohd Shafri, H. Z., Saito, K., & Yeo, L. B. (2022a). ABC of green infrastructure analysis and planning: The basic ideas and methodological guidance based on landscape ecological principle. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 73(July), 127600. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2022.127600

• Yeo, O. T. S., Mohd Yusof, M. J., Maruthaveeran, S., Saito, K., & Abu Kasim, J. (2022b). Green infrastructure transitional management sphere analysis of policies and regulations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Planning Malaysia, 20(2), 61–73. https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v20i21.1092

• Yusof, M. J. (2012). True colours of urban green spaces: Identifying and assessing the qualities of green spaces in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia [Doctoral dissertation, University of Edinburgh]. https://era.ed.ac.uk/handle/1842/8111