By Karen Bong
KUCHING, Nov 12: Sarawak will assume full authority over natural resources and environment matters within its territory through its own legislation, which is stipulated under Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), once the proposed Natural Resources and Environment Bill, 2024 is passed.
Tabling the Bill in the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUS) sitting here today, Second Minister for Natural Resources and Urban Development Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan emphasised that ultimately, the Environment Quality Act 1974, a federal law, will then no longer apply in Sarawak.
Since “environment” is not listed in the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution, it is considered a residual matter, allowing Sarawak to legislate on environmental issues under Article 77 of the Federal Constitution.
“The Bill is introduced with aim of repealing the Natural Resources and Environment Ordinance [Chapter 84] (1958 Edition), which has provided a legislative framework for six decades, undergoing several revisions since 1972 until most recently in 2020.
“The intent of this new Bill is to provide a modern comprehensive approach to the management of Sarawak’s natural resources and environment conservation.
“It will empower Sarawak to exercise full authority over critical areas such as resource conservation, environment management, pollution control and sustainable development,” he said.
Natural resources encompass air, biological diversity of resources, minerals, oil, gas, forest produce, land, rocks, soils, sub-soils, water, animals, birds, plants and marine or aquatic life.
The Deputy Premier emphasised the new, comprehensive law is timely not only to safeguard Sarawak’s natural assets but also promote responsible development in alignment with global standards, given the latest development and emerging environmental concerns.
Following the first Technical Committee meeting under MA63 Implementation Action Council on May 28, 2024, it was noted that the Department of Environment (DOE) Malaysia will transfer authority for regulating scheduled wastes to the Natural Resources and Environment Board (NREB) by 2025.
“Hence this Bill has incorporated the provisions on scheduled waste management,” he said.
Key features of the Bill include the requirement of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) to identify and assess environmental impact of proposed development activities and outline mitigating measures before project approval and implementation.
It will empower Sarawak to regulate prescribed activities regarding discharges and emissions into the environment through licensing, provides licensing for scheduled waste conveyance to ensure controlled transport, establish an Environmental Fund for research, pollution mitigation, and spill response, and strengthen enforcement powers.
Awang Tengah stated that this Bill represents the Sarawak government’s unwavering commitment to environmental and natural resource protection, aligning with the core objectives of the Post-Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030. — DayakDaily
