Sustainable Harvesting and Conservation of Agarwood: A Case Study from the Upper Baram River in Sarawak, Malaysia

Abstract

Agarwood is one of the most valuable non-timber forest products harvested from the heart of the mountains of Southeast Asian tropical rain forests. Some species of trees in the genus Aquilaria (Thymelaeaceae) accumulate resins in parts of their trunks. Agarwood has a long history as a trade good, although ecological data and economic assessments regarding agarwood harvesting in natural habitats are lacking. The author performed field surveys in the upper reaches of the Baram River in Sarawak, Malaysia, to assess the possibility of harvesting natural agarwood sustainably. In 2004, the habitat density of Aquilaria beccariana around village L was less than one tree per ha, and only relatively mature trees produced resins in their trunks. The introduction of commercial logging and hill rice cultivation damages the habitat of A. beccariana . Thus, the conservation of primary forests is essential for natural agarwood harvesting. The local Penan people only harvest the portions of the trees where resins accumulate, which allows the trees to survive. However, exploitative agarwood harvesting has begun in this area since the early 2010s, as a result of intrusions by outsiders. Thus, one cannot assume that all agarwood harvesting in Sarawak is being conducted sustainably. Meanwhile, in areas with no traces of outside intruders, the number of mature agarwood-producing trees has been maintained, suggesting that the method of agarwood harvesting used by the villagers is sustainable. To ensure that agarwood harvesting is sustainable, traceability that is based on more strictly defined and more detailed information regarding all of the steps in the agarwood supply chain is required.