By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, May 23: The Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) bill proposed by the federal government cannot interfere with the authority of the Sarawak Constitution over land and land use, particularly concerning the development of permanent storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) and all related matters.
In a news report by TVS, Deputy Minister of Energy and Environmental Sustainability Datuk Dr Hazland Abang Hipni asserted that Sarawak’s rights must be respected and any efforts to regulate land use for carbon storage must get the approval of the Sarawak government.
“The land on the continental shelf within the borders of Sarawak is under the control of the Sarawak government.
“Therefore, the Sarawak government is of the opinion that the proposed CCUS bill, like the National Land Code, should not apply to Sarawak. State laws should govern the development of CCUS in Sarawak,” he said in a statement yesterday (May 22).
Dr Hazland noted that a separate CCUS bill would be presented by the federal Ministry of Economy at the end of this year, which aims to regulate the entire CCUS value chain. Initial CO2 storage activities will focus on offshore areas, with onshore activities considered later, subject to feasibility studies.
“At this point, the Sarawak government has passed the Land Code (Amendment) Bill 2022 and in accordance with it, the Land (Carbon Storage) Regulation 2022 has been enacted to control the use of Sarawak’s land, both offshore and inland, for the development of storage sites, the permanent storage of CO2, and monitoring of these sites.
“The amendments in the Land Code and Carbon Storage Regulations were to uphold the Sarawak Constitution’s authority over land use for carbon storage,” he explained.
Dr Hazland also stressed that the Sarawak government remains committed to working with the federal government on CCUS development.
“We welcome consultation and constructive engagement to harmonise federal and Sarawak laws in developing and improving the CCUS industry with the goal of reaching Malaysia’s net zero target by 2050,” he said. — DayakDaily
