By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, July 5: Sarawak is moving closer to its target of one million hectares of Totally Protected Areas (TPAs) with over 879,000 hectares gazetted to date.
According to Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) general manager Abang Arabi Abang Aimran, the gazetted area comprises 71 TPAs, including national parks, nature reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries.
“The Sarawak government’s policy is to gazette one million hectares as TPAs. To date, more than 879,000 hectares have been gazetted across 71 TPAs.
“These three categories of protected areas have been established for biodiversity conservation, tourism, research, and community recreation throughout Sarawak,” he said after the pre-opening ceremony of the One Stop Centre (OSC) at the Bukit Lima Nature Reserve in Sibu today, as reported by TVS.
Meanwhile, he explained that gazetting TPAs is not only aimed at protecting the State’s natural heritage but also at benefiting local communities.
He further elaborated that Sarawak’s approach to gazetting national parks and nature reserves takes into account the interests of local communities through the provisions of Section 8, which allow residents to use certain resources within the protected areas for their own subsistence.
At the same time, he noted that the initiative is also in line with the Post Covid-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030), particularly under the rural transformation thrust, which encourages the co-management of protected areas with local communities to generate local income.
“Communities have an advantage because these protected areas are located near their settlements, and the resources within them can serve as catalysts for socioeconomic development,” he said.
On future plans, he said SFC has identified several new areas to be proposed as national parks, although all are still undergoing the gazettement process. The proposed areas include Baleh, Ulu Keluan in Baram, which is home to the Three Sisters Waterfall, and the Sebangkoi Nature Reserve in Sarikei.
He said these three areas are still at the preliminary stage of the gazettement process and are not yet included among the 71 TPAs that have already been gazetted.
He also disclosed that the Usun Apau Nature Reserve has been gazetted, although plans to develop tourism products in the area are still being formulated. — DayakDaily
