Forest Management Certification - The Way Foward

YAB Tan Sri Datuk Amar Haji Adenan Bin Haji Satem - Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) is a key component of sustainable development. It requires adherence to such principles as balance between ecological, economic, and social dimensions of sustainability, strong consensus among stakeholders, a cross-sectorial approach and partnership. It has gained prominence as s global concern at the 1992 United Nation conference on environment and development (the earth summit). Since the conference, governments, industry and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have introduced initiatives to promote Sustainable Forest Management at the international, national and regional level.

But Sarawak has been practising and adopting Sustainable Forest Management since the 1950s and the Forest Policy 1954 where sustainability of the forests, safeguarding, the environment and the local communities is still very much relevant as of today.

Sustainable Forest Management and safeguarding the environment are the main principles that we has follow while developing our forest resources. With the help of the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) beginning in the 1990s, we conducted extensive studies on timber road planning., alignment and construction in to order to minimize impact on the environment; ad on Reduced Impact Logging (RIL) in a Model Forest Management Area (MFMA).

In spite of our effort, reducing environmental impact remains a great challenge. Sarawak occupies some of the most remote and mountainous terrain in Central Borneo and rainfall is high. Soil loss due to road construction and natural erosion like landslides is invariably high and difficult to control. Many international critics do not, or do not want, to understand this and keep an accusing us of destroying our forest and environment.

In Sarawak, prior to 2010, there were two sites i.e Selaan-Linau Forest Management Unit (FMU)had undergone certification activities under the old Malaysian Standards Certification Scheme. Anapmuput FMU has since 2012 pursued newly revised MTCS and was successfully certified under the Malaysian, Criteria and Indicator (Natural Forest) 2002. I would like to acknowledge the achievement by Zedtee Sdn. Bhd for putting Sarawak into the map.

As a responsible Government, the State have a major role to play in setting out a policy and institutional framework, and as significant actors ourselves, for instance as forest owners. The State as i had emphasized earlier is fully committed to Sustainable Forest Management. The State Government will adopt any best practices in Forest Management. The States considers Forest Management Certification (FMC)as one of the key tools to improve forest management standard and practices in Sarawak. Timber industry must co-operate fully with the government to combat the negative perception of poor or ineffective management of the state's forest.

To ensure that the forest areas in Sarawak are sustainably managed based on international standard and recognized by the world communities, the Forest Department Sarawak (FDS) must begin to take initiatives to promote Forest Management Certification in Sarawak. The Forest Department Sarawak will act as a central facilitator and catalyst in the certification process. The Forest Department had already prepared action plan and develop relevant guidelines and procedures for the implementation of forest certification in Sarawak.

The state government is encouraging all the major license holders namely Shin Yan, WTK, KTS, Samling, Rimbunan Hijau, Ta Ann, and STIDC to obtain International Forest Management Certification for their timber products. The certification scheme or forest stewardship council or programme for the endorsement of forest certification schemes.