Assessment of Tree Vandalism Level in Kuala Kangsar Urban Park, Perak, Malaysia

Abstract

Landscape Architecture Agenda 2050 classified vandalism as a serious environmental threat. Vandalism incidence has a major impact on urban tree performances, such as health declines, poor appearance, and performance-related effects. Hence, there is a need for a tree vandalism assessment that can present the tree vandalism statuses to guide decision-makers and tree managers in the improvement and rectification of decisions. This study assessed the level of tree vandalism incidents in Kuala Kangsar Urban Park, Perak, Malaysia. The study used a quantitative approach by analysing the tree vandalism data from two sampling locations comprising commercial and recreational areas were accessed. The result indicates three major findings. The first is that the vandalism level of tree vandalism incidence in the commercial areas (362.68v) was generally higher than in the recreational (242.82v). Second, wounding tree stems due to construction work activity was the main factor for tree vandalism incidents. And finally, disservice trees were confirmed to be associated with intentional tree vandalism incidents that need to be considered in the tree vandalism issues. The study concluded that the tree vandalism status in Kuala Kangsar Urban Park is very low in classification. It was recommended that the level of tree vandalism in the urban area should be constant and closely monitored. Future studies should investigate and include qualitative inputs that incorporate human subjects to enable generalization within the comprehensive context.