29/3/06 (The Edge Daily)  -  According to WWF, Wednesday's announcement also spells the end of plans to create the world's largest palm oil plantation in Kalimantan along Indonesia's mountainous border with Malaysia.

The scheme - supported by Chinese investments - was expected to cover an area of 1.8 million hectares and would have had long-lasting, damaging consequences on the Heart of Borneo.

WWF repeatedly said new oil palm plantations should be established on degraded, non-forested land.

"WWF considers the Heart of Borneo to be one of its top global priorities," added Leape. "It is hugely important to maintain a large enough area of Borneo's forests for the survival of the natural ecosystems."

"This is critical for sustainable development and WWF stands ready to assist Borneo's three governments with technical and financial support, so that we can make the conservation vision a reality."

The Brunei Government's representative, Mahmud Yussof, said he hoped a tri-country Declaration for the Heart of Borneo could be signed at the fourteenth session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, next May in New York.