Sarawak CM plans to halve number of OT licences

KUCHING: The Sarawak government will cut by half the number of “Occupational Ticket” (OT) licences given presently for the clearing of land for plantations and native customary land.

Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem, who holds the resource planning and environment portfolio, said he would review all 155 existing OT licences on a case-by-case basis.

"I am considering terminating more than half of the OT licences. Those due for renewal will also be considered based on merit," Adenan said yesterday.

There are various types of logging licences in Sarawak, including timber licences on state land, licences for "Permanent Forest Estates" and separate mangrove and belian licences.

In total, the Sarawak government has issued 572 timber licences.

Adenan said the annual timber volume was about 9 million cubic metres – an amount he insisted was sufficient "to feed our local timber industry with excess for export”.

The review on the number of licence holders, he said, was timely with the aim of consolidating the logging industry so that this would be “effectively regulated, monitored and controlled”.

Some licensed logging areas, added Adenan, would be reduced in size, taking away those that were too high or located on steep terrain.

Asked how serious was environmental degradation in the state, Adenan said he did not want the recent Cameron Highlands landslide to happen here.