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Nature For Sale But Who s Buying? Biodiversity Banking in Malua, Sabah.

Chin, Melissa LU (2008) IMEN56 20081
The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics
Abstract
There is a growing shift in environmental management tools from the traditional command
and control approach to market mechanisms where environmental goods and services are
assigned market values to generate incentives for environmental protection. In November
2007, the Sabah state government announced a joint venture with New Forests Pty. Ltd. to set
up a Wildlife Conservation Bank at Malua Forest Reserve. In doing so, Malaysia will be the
first country to sell biodiversity credits in Southeast Asia. Targeting oil palm businesses, energy
companies and the biofuel sector as potential buyers of credits, it is a presumed move to
improve the palm oil industry s environmental portfolio by engaging them in conservation
initiatives. This... (More)
There is a growing shift in environmental management tools from the traditional command
and control approach to market mechanisms where environmental goods and services are
assigned market values to generate incentives for environmental protection. In November
2007, the Sabah state government announced a joint venture with New Forests Pty. Ltd. to set
up a Wildlife Conservation Bank at Malua Forest Reserve. In doing so, Malaysia will be the
first country to sell biodiversity credits in Southeast Asia. Targeting oil palm businesses, energy
companies and the biofuel sector as potential buyers of credits, it is a presumed move to
improve the palm oil industry s environmental portfolio by engaging them in conservation
initiatives. This study seeks to understand how the Malua bank will be established, local
stakeholder perceptions and the potential challenges and benefits of implementing biodiversity
banking in Malaysia. The study was conducted based on literature review and interviews with
identified stakeholders. Although there is great potential and interest for the adoption of
market mechanisms in Malaysia, it was found that there are still concerns regarding the
transparency, credibility and permanence of the scheme owing to a lack of legislative support
and obligation for biodiversity offsets at a national or state level. Furthermore, the newness of
the scheme meant that there are gaps in knowledge and expertise among local conservation
groups and government agencies which may affect the outcome of the Malua bank. The final
details on the bank set up are still under deliberation and will only be finalised in June 2008.
As such, the conclusions of this study remain preliminary. Further work needs to be done on
whether voluntary or regulatory offset schemes would work best in Malaysia and how benefits
from market schemes can be passed on to local and indigenous communities in an equitable
manner. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Chin, Melissa LU
supervisor
organization
course
IMEN56 20081
year
type
H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
subject
keywords
Biodiversity
language
English
id
1413833
date added to LUP
2009-06-03 14:00:45
date last changed
2009-06-03 14:00:45
@misc{1413833,
  abstract     = {{There is a growing shift in environmental management tools from the traditional command
and control approach to market mechanisms where environmental goods and services are
assigned market values to generate incentives for environmental protection. In November
2007, the Sabah state government announced a joint venture with New Forests Pty. Ltd. to set
up a Wildlife Conservation Bank at Malua Forest Reserve. In doing so, Malaysia will be the
first country to sell biodiversity credits in Southeast Asia. Targeting oil palm businesses, energy
companies and the biofuel sector as potential buyers of credits, it is a presumed move to
improve the palm oil industry s environmental portfolio by engaging them in conservation
initiatives. This study seeks to understand how the Malua bank will be established, local
stakeholder perceptions and the potential challenges and benefits of implementing biodiversity
banking in Malaysia. The study was conducted based on literature review and interviews with
identified stakeholders. Although there is great potential and interest for the adoption of
market mechanisms in Malaysia, it was found that there are still concerns regarding the
transparency, credibility and permanence of the scheme owing to a lack of legislative support
and obligation for biodiversity offsets at a national or state level. Furthermore, the newness of
the scheme meant that there are gaps in knowledge and expertise among local conservation
groups and government agencies which may affect the outcome of the Malua bank. The final
details on the bank set up are still under deliberation and will only be finalised in June 2008.
As such, the conclusions of this study remain preliminary. Further work needs to be done on
whether voluntary or regulatory offset schemes would work best in Malaysia and how benefits
from market schemes can be passed on to local and indigenous communities in an equitable
manner.}},
  author       = {{Chin, Melissa}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Nature For Sale But Who s Buying? Biodiversity Banking in Malua, Sabah.}},
  year         = {{2008}},
}