KUCHING: Sarawak has issued nine Carbon Study Permits covering approximately 231,983 hectares across nine divisions as part of efforts to advance nature-based solutions and strengthen climate resilience.
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the initiatives, involving forests, wetlands, mangroves and coastal ecosystems, are aimed at reducing climate risks while protecting biodiversity and water resources.
“Our position remains clear: carbon initiatives must strengthen conservation, maintain environmental integrity and deliver equitable benefits to local communities,” he said in his keynote address at the Second Malaysia Conservation Conference 2026 here today (July 13).
Awang Tengah, who is also the Second Minister of Natural Resources and Urban Development, said Sarawak views conservation and economic growth as complementary priorities supported by responsible policies, sound governance and long-term planning.
“For the Sarawak government, conservation is not merely a cost but an investment in natural capital that supports water security, food production, renewable energy, climate resilience, sustainable tourism, scientific research and new economic opportunities,” he said.
He said Sarawak’s biodiversity and natural ecosystems provided essential services, including regulating water supplies, storing carbon, reducing flood and drought risks, protecting coastlines and sustaining rural and indigenous communities.
To safeguard these ecosystems, Awang Tengah said the state adopts a landscape-level conservation approach, with the Permanent Forest Estate covering almost four million hectares of hill forests, peat swamp forests and mangrove ecosystems.
He added that the state’s network of 71 National Parks, Nature Reserves and Wildlife Sanctuaries covers about 2.1 million hectares across terrestrial and marine ecosystems, with efforts ongoing to expand terrestrial protected areas beyond one million hectares.
Awang Tengah said Sarawak’s conservation efforts had gained international recognition, including the inscription of the Niah National Park Caves Complex as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2024, as well as Bako National Park and Lambir Hills National Park being recognised as ASEAN Heritage Parks.
He said these achievements were supported by the Post COVID-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030), which integrates sustainability across key sectors including infrastructure, energy, industry, agriculture, tourism and education.
