Deforestation at Large in Malaysia

Recent reports by a research group called Wetlands International have confirmed a substantial deforestation rate in Malaysian forests, reportedly at a rate almost three times faster than the rest of Asia.

The actual numbers indicate that in Sarawak, the largest Malaysian state on the island of Borneo, about ten percent of the forested are uprooted annually over a five year period. A parallel range of years for the rest of Asia shows a 2.8 percent deforestation rate. Taken all together, approximately 353,000 hectares of rain forest land was deforested within these last five years alone.

These recent studies may very well indicate and correlate with a higher demand for palm oil, a product produced largely in Malaysia and neighboring Indonesia and made largely from the stripped forests.

Link to article:

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/SEAsia/Story/STIStory_630609.html