Licuala borneensis

The forests in which this species occurs are threatened by unsustainable logging and conversion to plantations (L.G. Saw pers. comm. 2011). In Sarawak, oil palm plantations covered an area of 26,237 ha in 1984. By 2003 this figure rose to 464,774 ha which gives an average annual growth rate of 7.9% (cited in Rautner et al. 2005). A more recent report by UNEP (2007) states that natural rainforests of Sumatera and Borneo are being cleared so rapidly that up to 98% may be destroyed by 2022 without urgent action.

This species occurs in Niah National Park, Sarawak. It is not listed on CITES and seeds from this species are not present in the Millennium Seed Bank, UK. It is known to occur in cultivation within Semengoh Botanic Gardens, Kuching, Sarawak. The source material probably derives from a collection made by Kit Pearce in 2002 (L.G. Saw pers. comm. 2011). Saw (2012) listed this species as Endangered (EN B1 + B2).

In February 2007, the governments of Brunei, Malaysia, and Indonesia agreed to protect roughly 220,000 km² of tropical forest in the so-called "Heart of Borneo". The initiative is designed to not only protect large areas of forests but to also provide water and food security, as well as to support the cultural survival for the people of central Borneo. It is hoped that the adoption of this initiative by all stakeholders will save the island from the ultimate threat of deforestation and increased impacts from droughts and fires (Chapman et al. 2007). The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is one initiative working on equitable and sustainable palm oil production in Borneo.