Appendix 1 Sarawak: Forest Policy and Legislation Forest Policy The Forest Policy of Sarawak, which was approved by the Governor-in- Council on 23rd December 1954, continued to be the basic Supreme Council directives on the practice of Forestry in the State. The details of the policy are reproduced below. The following statement is to be read as the official policy of the Government of Sarawak in matters pertaining to forestry, and is issued for the information and guidance of all officers of the Government service. General Statement of the Policy It is the policy of the Government of Sarawak: (1) To reserve permanently for the benefit of the present and future inhabitants of the country forest land sufficient (a) for the assurance of the sound climatic and physical condition of the country; the safeguarding of soil fertility, and of supplies of water for domestic and industrial use, irrigation and general agricultural purposes; and the prevention of damage by flooding and erosion to rivers and to agricultural land; (b) for the supply in perpetuity and at moderate prices of all forms of forest produce that can be economically produced within the country and that are required by the people for agricultural, domestic and industrial purposes under a fully developed national economy. (2) To manage the productive forests of the Permanent Forest Estate with the object of obtaining the highest possible revenue compatible with the principle of sustained yield and with the primary objects set out above. (3) To promote, as far as may be practicable, the thorough and economical utilisation of forest products on land not included in the Permanent Forest Estate, prior to the alienation of such land. (4) To foster, as far as may be compatible with the prior claims of local demands, a profitable export trade in forest produce. 207 208 Appendix 1 Realisation of the Policy Classes of Permanent Forest The Forest Law of Sarawak (Forests Ordinance, 1953) provides for three types of permanent Forest. All types are classified as Reserved Land under the Land (Classification) Ordinance, 1948. (1) Forest Reserves: Permanent Forests are to be constituted as Forest Reserves wherever the strictest form of control is necessary for the realisation of sections (1) and (2) of the general statement of policy. They will normally be productive forests, destined to be the principal permanent sources of the country's supplies of timber and other forest produce; and forests that are rich in trees of particular value, such as belian, should, except in very exceptional circumstances, be constituted as Forest Reserves. Forest Reserves should also be constituted where the protection of water catchment areas is required; where the surrounding population is so dense that the admission of the general rights and privileges recognised in Protected Forests would prohibit the successful management of the forest; and, in some circumstances (see Communal Forests), where the forest is required as a source of domestic supplies for a specified community. (2) Protected Forests: In Protected Forests the Forest Law admits wide rights to the people of Sarawak to take forest produce for their own domestic use, to hunt and to fish, and to pasture cattle. A Permanent Forest may be constituted as a Protected Forest if the primary purpose of constitution is the general protection of soils and waters, and the terrain or vegetation is of such a nature that intensive management as an important productive forest is unlikely to be practicable; or if an extensive Permanent Forest is constituted in little-known territory, where the correct use of all the land cannot yet be determined. (3) Communal Forests: A Communal Forest will be constituted only where it is clearly the desire of a settled community to set aside a convenient area of woodland to provide its domestic needs of forest produce. Such forests shall be under the control of the Administration, who shall however, consult the Forest Department on all important technical matters. Communal Forests will normally be large enough only to supply permanently the domestic needs of the community specified, allowing for a reasonable increase in population; but exceptions may be made when the necessity of preserving forests for protective reasons is combined with the need for domestic supplies of forest produce. It may frequently be found that the constitution of a permanent forest as a source of domestic supplies is desirable, even where the wish is not expressed by the Appendix 1 209 community concerned. The forest may then be constituted as a Forest Reserve, in which all necessary privileges will be granted to the specified community. In no case should such a forest be constituted as a Protected Forest, which permits general rights exceeding the limits of the specified community . Constitution of Permanent Forests (1) Permanent Forests are constituted by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry responsible for Forestry on the advice of the Director of Forests, and after an inquiry in which the local people are consulted and the existence of rights investigated. Similarly the Permanent Secretary has powers to revoke Permanent Forests, and to change the status of a Protected Forest to that of Forest Reserve. (2) As timber is a slow-growing crop, it must be recognised that security of tenure is an essential requirement of successful forest management. It follows that Permanent Forest must be constituted only after the most careful inquiry, for which local administrative officers and other land use departments are responsible. Revocation, particularly of forests under systematic plans of management, requires equally careful consideration. Administrative expediency is rarely an adequate reason for revocation. (3) The most desirable of Permanent Forests is one that assures that realisation of both the objects of protection and production laid down in section (1) of the General Statement of Policy. In selecting areas for constitution as Permanent Forests, however, the following considerations are to be given due weight: (a) The nature of the terrain may limit the potential productivity of a forest. It is therefore not always possible to combine the objects of protection and production. (b) In order to provide conveniently for local demands for forest produce, productive Permanent Forests should be distributed as evenly as possible throughout the country. (c) The establishment of a balanced economy in all districts is desirable, and the tendency in newly developed countries to rely upon a very few industries is to be deprecated. It has also been repeatedly shown that forests may provide a livelihood for the native peoples when food crops fail or other industries are depressed. (d) Timber is a heavy and bulky commodity, difficult to transport. Potentially productive forests should therefore be so situated that they are provided with reasonable access to the principal lines of communications. (4) The cultivation of essential foodstuffs by systems of settled 210 Appendix 1 agriculture, including properly managed bushfallow, on suitable soils will normally take precedence over forestry, provided that due consideration is given to section (3) above. (5) Sarawak is deficient in mineral wealth. Mining will, therefore, normally take precedence over forestry, provided that due consideration is given to section (3) above, and provided also that the nature of the mining operations shall not be deleterious to the soils and waters of the country. (6) In addition to the general rights granted in Protected Forests, rights may be admitted or privileges conceded in Forest Reserves and Protected Forests; but claims to rights must be clearly substantiated by Native Customary Law or by evidence of their exercise over long and continuous periods, and a clear distinction is to be made between an established right and a conceded privilege. (7) The exercise of any right or privilege that would prohibit the successful management of a Permanent Forest is not to be permitted, and the commutation of such rights is provided for in sections 15 (a) and 35 of the Forests Ordinance, 1953. No right or privilege that would permit the extension of shifting cultivation in a Permanent Forest may be admitted or conceded; Native Customary Law recognises such rights only over young secondary forest (temuda), and this limitation is to be strictly enforced. The admission of rights and the concession of privileges are to be so worded that they may be subject to reasonable control in accordance with sections 9 and 34 of the Forests Ordinance, 1953. Management of Permanent Forests (1) The Director of Forests is responsible to the Government for the management of Forest Reserves and Protected Forests. He is to ensure that productive forests are so managed that they will provide the highest possible sustained yield of timber and other forest produce. The principle of sustained yield will apply, as far as may be possible, to each district and not only to the country as a whole. (2) Where protection of soils and waters is the primary object of a Permanent Forest, the Director is to ensure the control of exploitation of forest produce in such manner that the protective value of the forest is not impaired. (3) Officers in charge of Communal Forests will ensure that the felling of trees is within the limits of a possible sustained yield. Exploitation of Forests: General (1) The Forests Ordinance, 1953, provides that no sawmill shall be Appendix 1 211 built or operated without the Director's permission. It is essential to ensure that the capacity of sawmills does not exceed the productivity of the forests that are available as sources of supply. Where the source of supply is forest land destined for eventual alienation, it is nevertheless desirable to ensure to each approved sawmill an economically long life. (2) It is probable that, for a long time to come, the potential production of most kinds of forest produce will exceed the demand within the country.