KUCHING, Dec 15: Peterson & Control Union in collaboration with Jagoi Area Development Committee (JADC) and WWF-Malaysia is funding “Retaining Forest and Culture in Jagoi Heritage Forest Sarawak”.
The project which runs for six months is Peterson & Control Union’s corporate social responsibility in conjunction with their 100th anniversary celebration this year.
In this project, 1.8 hectares of degraded and landslide areas in Jagoi Heritage Forest will be restored through the planting of 1000 native tree species such as meranti (Shorea spp.), kapur (Dryobalanops beccarii), gaharu (Aquilaria beccariana), belian (Eusideroxylon zwageri), selangan batu pinang (Shorea havilandidi) and other local tree species.
The seedlings were contributed by the Forest Department of Sarawak as their support for forest landscape restoration efforts in Sarawak.
The project kicked off on Dec 2020 and was attended by representatives from JADC and WWF-Malaysia. Also present were James Lopaz Luhum from Peterson and Control Union, Deputy Director of Forest Department Sarawak Jack Liam, Chief Executive Officer of Sarawak Oil Palm Plantation Owners Association Andrew Cheng, and State Administrative Officer of Bau District Office Eddy Nayoi.
“Peterson & Control Union has a long 100 years history and leading experiences in the field of logistics, quality, certifications and risk management, we uphold our core values of honesty, integrity and respect for people, society and environment. We are very delighted to financially support JADC and WWF-Malaysia for this project. We can make an impact globally by supporting locally,” said General Manager of Peterson & Control Union (Malaysia) Supun Sachithra Nigamuni, who unfortunately could not travel to Sarawak for this event.
He pointed out that it is crucial for Peterson & Control Union to put continuous efforts in balancing the 3Ps (People, Planet, Profit) of sustainability despite the downturn during the current pandemic. Control Union, being a certification body, is authorized to conduct and issue certifications from sustainability (MSPO, RSPO), biofuel and biomass (GGL, ISCC) and more.
Chairman of JADC, Professor Dr Gabriel Tonga Noweg mentioned that Jagoi Heritage Forest or locally known as Bung Jagoi is a heritage site for the Bidayuh of Jagoi in Bau District. Locals who enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking recognise Bung Jagoi as a popular hiking spot. Some hikers who happened to be there, also got their hands soiled and joined in the tree planting activity.
“Being one of the five sites in Malaysia that applied for the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Green List of Protected and Conserved areas, we hope to demonstrate the efforts of the Bung Jagoi community as stewards of the forests in Sarawak. Successful listing would be a great recognition of these efforts,” he said.
He also mentioned that JADC is currently in the process of developing a long-term management plan for Jagoi Heritage Forest. Some of their proposed plans include conducting various studies on forest health, potential tourism spots, evaluating existing resources and the supply capacity for non timber products such as rattan.— DayakDaily
