Realising the increasing incidences of coastal erosion which threatens coastal population and leads to loss of properties along the coastlines, the Government has carried out the National Coastal Erosion Study from November 1984 to January 1986 and the study results indicate that out of the country's coastline of 4,809 km, about 29% or 1,380 km was facing erosion. In order to cope with this problem, the Government has set up the Coastal Engineering Centre in the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) in 1987 to implement coastal erosion control program throughout the country.

The Malaysian coastline varies from scenic bays flanked by rocky headlands to shallow mud flats lined with mangrove forests. On the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, the high sediment yield from river discharges and harsher wave environment create the setting for a coastline of hook-shaped sandy bays.  Whilst on the west coast, the mild wave climate of the Straits of Malacca make for wide mud shores and coastal forests rich in biodiversity.  Similar forms characterised the beaches of Sarawak and Sabah although certain sandy areas are very flat.  Shore materials include a mix of sand, silts, and even shells with some patches of gravels and the occasional rock outcrops.

River Mouth Improvement Activities

There are more than 150 river mouths in Malaysia and many of them are facing siltation problem, which reduces the water depth for fishing access and has negative impact on the development of fishing industry. The Government has carried out the National River Mouth Study in 1994 and the study results indicate that 35 river mouths faced critical siltation. The master plan developed recommends that improvement work be carried out in 10 years involving a total cost of RM 330 millions. Based on the master plan, a river mouth improvement program was approved under the Seventh Malaysia Plan for carrying out dredging and construction of improvement structures.

Coastal Zone Management Activities

National Coastal Erosion Study was completed in 1986 and the study findings revealed that out of the country's total coastline of 4,809 km, about 29% or 1,380 km is facing  erosion problem. In order to tackle this problem, the Government has set up the Coastal Engineering Technical Centre within the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) in 1987 to implement coastal erosion control program for the whole country. The program involves two strategies, i.e., and both long-term and short-term strategies. The short-term strategy involves construction of erosion control projects and the long-term strategy involves improving coastal zone management in an integrated manner so that incidences of coastal erosion will not increase.

National Coastal Vulnerability (to sea level rise) Index Study

National Coastal Vulnerability Index (NCVI)

National Coastal Vulnerability Index Study is required to identify coastal area exposed to the effect of sea level rise. The result of the study will be used to prepare Coastal Vulnerability Index with level of exposure to coastal area so that any development in these areas can be avoided. At the same time it will be the basis to implement protection measure caused by sea level rise. The index will provide an indicator as to how vulnerable the coastline is to the impacts of accelerated sea level rise. Vulnerability to impacts encompasses biogeophysical, economic, and institutional and socio-cultural factors. A comprehensive development of NCVI will be carried out in phases. The first phase of the NCVI study has been completed in December 2007. It covers two (2) pilots sites namely Tg. Piai, Johore in the South, and Pulau Langkawi,Kedah in the north. Based on a 20-year tidal record at the two pilot sites, the rate of the local or relative sea level rise at both sites may be considered to be smaller than the average global-low rate of 2 – 3 mm/year (i.e. SLR at Tg Piai = 0.2 – 1.3 mm/yr; SLR at Langkawi = 0.5 – 1.0 mm/yr) The increase in flood levels at both sites for the local SLR scenario is not significantly high.