The forest management objectives are clearly enshrined in the National Forestry Policy which was formulated and approved by the National Forestry Council and later endorsed by the National Land Council on 19 April, 1978. This Policy is being implemented by all the states in Peninsular Malaysia, while the objectives of this Policy are also being implemented in Sabah and Sarawak. However, with the recent concern by the world community on the importance of biological diversity conservation and the sustainable utilization of genetic resources, as well as the role of local communities in forest development, the National Forestry Policy was revised in 1992 to include these important aspects of forestry.
Specifically, some of the salient features regarding the long term objectives of the Government in forest management and development are as follows:
· To manage the forest resource sustainably for the continuous production of forest goods and services and their optimum utilisation, compatible with environmental requirements.
· To increase the supply of forest goods and services through appropriate forestry activities that enhance the quality, productivity and utilisation of the forest resources.
· To further develop appropriate environmentally sound technology for the conservation, management and utilisation of the forest resources.
· To conserve and protect the forests' biological diversity, water and soil, and their sustainable utilisation.
· To increase the quality and efficiency of the forest-based processing mills and enhance higher value downstream activities.
· To strengthen human resources development (HRD) to support the forestry sector.
· To improve public awareness on the environmental and conservational roles of forests through education and dissemination of information.
· To increase the forestry sector's contribution to national income, foreign exchange and employment opportunities.
In the endeavour to ensure sustainable forest management in Peninsular Malaysia, a "Forest Management Policy and Strategy for Peninsular Malaysia" was adopted in 1976 as a supplement to the National Forestry Policy. This policy was formulated to ensure fuller utilization of the forest resource in the context of sustainable forest management and which is compatible with resource conservation and environmental protection. The explicit management policy and objectives that have been adopted are as follows:-
· to manage and utilize the forest resource for maximum benefits based on the inherent capability of the forest and on comprehensive forest land use and management plans;
· to determine potential yield based on systematic and in-depth appraisals of the forest resource base, its growth potential and other relevant factors;
· to harvest the forest resource conservationally by selective felling and the retention of adequate natural regeneration, consistent with economic harvesting, so as to ensure the sustainability of the forest resource base;
· to apply optimal forest management regimes based on information generated from integrated forest management and operational studies;
· to regenerate the harvested and poor forest in order to yield stock equivalent of 25 trees per hectare, of currently acceptable species, of at least 45 cm diameter at breast height, for the economic production of quality logs; and
· to establish forest plantation of both indigenous and exotic species with emphasis on fast-growing species and to promote multiple-use forestry and environmental conservation.
