Sarawak to cut down forests for oil palm plantation - report

ERJ staff report (DS)

Kuching, Malaysia -- The Sarawak government intends to convert one million hectares of land into oil palm plantations within the next ten years, according to a press release from an environmental lobby. Most of this land is currently covered by secondary rainforests, yet it also includes fruit and rubber plantations as well as hitherto untouched primary rainforests, including peatland swamp forests.

According to Sarawak's Land Development Minister, James Masing, the government needed to look into a “more aggressive” conversion of native lands into oil palm plantations. He said that the state government intended to double its oil palm plantation area from the current 920,000 hectares to 2 million hectares by 2020, and stated that his ministry had requested funds from the Malaysian federal government for this purpose.

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Press release from Environment News Service