August 16, 2012
FMT LETTER: From Malaysian Nature Society, via e-mail
We wish to congratulate Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak on the various successes of his administration. You, Sir, have spearheaded the introduction of National Key Result Areas (NKRAs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), which have been described as among the most effective methods to enhance the performance of the government.
Your Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) initiative with the 12 National Key Economic Areas (NKEAs) is also commendable and we join others in support of your efforts to lead Malaysia to new heights. The present efforts and noble objectives notwithstanding, we are concerned over the seeming lack of an environment component.
This is despite the widespread acceptance of, and several national policies on sustainable development as the over-arching and guiding principle for our country which stresses on the triple bottom line of people, planet and profits.
Malaysia needs urgent and decisive action to address several mounting environmental problems. Protection of our natural heritage needs the same emphasis as economic and human development. This has been enshrined and consistently followed in the previous Malaysia Plans. According to the latest IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 686 plants and 225 animals in Malaysia are at risk of extinction, placing Malaysia third in the list of countries with the largest number of threatened species, behind only Ecuador and the United States.
Charismatic and iconic wildlife species such as the Malayan tiger are disappearing while species previously thought to occur in abundance such as the sambar deer are becoming scarce. The main cause of this decline is undoubtedly the loss of habitats, in particular our tropical rainforest, and poaching. Despite Malaysia’s pledge to retain forest cover at 50% of our land area, there is tremendous pressure to convert these forested areas into other land uses, such as industrial “forest” plantations.
An independent study found that in 2010 the area of natural forest in Malaysia was 14,962,000ha or only 45%. Most of these remaining forests are within forest reserves and protected areas, with remaining state land forests unprotected in any way. The continued loss of natural forest will invariably lead to an increase in human-wildlife conflict, which will be a tricky challenge to tackle.
There is also frequent conversion of the legal status of so-called “permanent reserved forests” into state land forests for subsequent development. These forests are cleared for agriculture, property development or industrial development. Between 2001 and 2005, more than 40,000ha of forest reserves were excised in Peninsular Malaysia alone.
Forest excision or “degazettement” is the prerogative of the respective state governments and they are only required to notify such acts through individual state gazettes after the fact. A sterling exception, however, is the Selangor state government which has made it compulsory to hold public enquiries or open hearings before “degazetting” a forest reserve. In recent years, a new trend has emerged where natural forest is cleared without first excising the forest reserves concerned, followed by the establishment of monoculture plantations of mainly Latex Timber Clone (LTC) rubber trees and oil palm.
According to published Forestry Department Peninsular Malaysia statistics, the area within forest reserves planted with LTC increased dramatically from 2,195ha in 2005 to 17,443ha in 2007, with other crops (including palm oil) increasing from 2,673ha to 21,944ha within the same period. This trend is driven by the high price of timber, soft-loans from the federal government and other incentives for the establishment of “forest plantations”.
While we recognise that these plantations do play an important part in the country’s economy, they should not be established at the expense of natural forests but instead should be created on degraded areas and idle land. Additionally, these plantations cannot mimic the diversity and complexity of a natural forest but in fact undermine the wider natural forests and species that live within them.
The root cause for the clearing of forest is the dependence of state governments on a very narrow revenue base, namely exploitation of natural resources and land taxes. This small revenue stream leaves states dependent upon over-extractive and exploitative activities for short-term gains. In today’s globalised economy, such perverse incentives stymie innovation and diversification at the state level and contribute to undermine your wider vision for Malaysia.
Furthermore as seen in Kedah, Johor and in various parts of Sarawak, land clearance of this nature has the added issue of incurring the wrath of local communities, whether they are Orang Asli, Penan, Bidayuhs or Malays. The increased siltation and contamination of the water catchments and the water source itself is a major concern as humans depend on it and it is a major ingredient to life itself. These plantations do not just physically affect the water quality, but also affect the long-term water source as there is continued pesticide, herbicide and fertiliser use which seeps into the soil and thereafter into the water courses.
We thus call on your premiership to walk the talk that you have portrayed to Malaysia by making the ETP more accountable to the people, who will all be affected by the loss of ecosystem services which forests provide. To reduce the further degradation of our natural forest, perhaps it is prudent to consider the following points:
•To freeze all new LTC projects, conduct a stocktaking of the locations of all LTC plantations and identify alternative sites for those slated to be developed inside forest reserves.
•Increase incentives for environmental protection, including protecting forests for their strategic role in water security, flood mitigation, climate, erosion control and biodiversity conservation. This can include a diversion of government revenue earned from visitors to natural areas towards the protection of these sites, to decrease the pressure to exploit them unsustainably (e.g., a portion of the service tax from tourist establishments can be diverted to state funds where their use can be linked to protecting natural areas crucial for tourism development.
•Increase disincentives for extractive industries such as forest clearance and mining (e.g., introducing conservation tax).
This letter is endorsed by the Conservation Alliance for Tigers (MYCAT), TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Wildlife Conservation Society-Malaysia Programme,WWF-Malaysia
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label environment. Show all posts
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Friday, May 04, 2012
Black & White - The true colors of Panda
The WWF is the largest environmental protection organisation in the world. Trust in its green projects is almost limitless. With rousing campaigns, the WWF directly targets the conscience of its donors -- everyone should do their part to save endangered species, the climate and/or the rainforest. The WWF was founded 50 years ago, on September 11, 1961. Today it is the most influential lobby group for the environment in the world, thanks largely to its excellent contacts in both the political and industrial spheres and to its ability to walk a constant tightrope between commitment and venality. A year in the making, this film will dispel the green image of the WWF however. Behind the organisation's eco-facade, the Film uncovered explosive stories from all around the world. This documentary seeks to reveal the secrets of the WWF. It is a journey into the heart of the green empire and may shatter public faith in the panda forever.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
SOLIDARITI SEMALAYSIA STOP LYNAS DEMONSTRATIONS
Dear Caring Malaysians,
SOLIDARITI SEMALAYSIA STOP LYNAS DEMONSTRATIONS
Sunday, 26th Feb 2012 , 6.00pm
Speakers Square
Padang Kota Lama (Esplanade)
Penang
Concerned citizens and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Penang will hold an event to show our support to the people of Kuantan in their 3rd year fight to stop the Lynas factory from producing radioactive wastes to poison our land and our people.
Pollutants and radioactive waste once leaked into the soil, water and air will quickly spread throughout our country. A poisoned Kuantan will mean a poisoned Penang.
People from all walks of life have the right to be informed of the danger. They have the right to take part to protect the natural environment, their health and their livelihood.
The Penang event is part of the nation wide solidarity campaign on 26th February.
JOIN US THIS SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2012
SOLIDARITI SEMALAYSIA STOP LYNAS DEMONSTRATIONS
Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang and Kota Kinabalu
For more info, visit:
In solidarity with Himpunan Hijau 2.0: Langkah Lestari in Kuantan
Please forward & Share, Thanks!
Event co-organizers:
People's Green Coalition
Green Voters Penang
Coalitions of Good Governance Penang
Suaram Penang
Sembang-sembang Forum
For enquiries:
Lee Hui Fei
Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
Penang Branch Coordinator,
63B-01-07, University Heights,
Jalan Sungai Dua,
11700 Penang.
Tel: +6 04-6582285
E-mail: suarampg@gmail.com
http://suarampg.blogspot.com/
Saturday, January 14, 2012
‘Green courts’ to protect the environment
Saturday January 14, 2012 MYT 5:34:00 PM
Star
PUTRAJAYA: A man who stole 11 cans of Tiger beer and Guinness stout was jailed for five years. And another man who had illegal possession of a dead tiger got away with a RM7,000 fine.
“Clearly our values are misplaced. Surely, our tigers are worth more than the 11 cans of Tiger beer,” Chief Justice Tan Sri Arifin Zakaria said when opening the 2012 Legal Year and Conference of Judges here Saturday.
To end this problem, specialised “environmental courts” may soon be introduced in the country to handle cases involving environmental crime.
Arifin said there should be an end to the lack of sensitivity to such crimes.
He said the judiciary would provide more training to its judges and officers on environmental law.
He also issued a stern reminder to members of the judiciary not to abuse their position and to avoid exposure to corrupt practices.
Judges and officers, he said, should continue to maintain the dignity and integrity of their office.
“We should at all times conduct ourselves in a manner befitting our position in society.
“Always bear in mind that your conduct, be it in private or in your official capacity, is subject to public scrutiny.
“In conducting a trial, do it with decorum,” he said.
Arifin also urged lawyers to stop making wild and baseless accusations against judges.
“This is because your words are taken seriously by the public. Such allegations may undermine the integrity of the judiciary,” he said.
He also announced that from this month, all criminal and civil appeals in the Federal Court would be heard by a five-man quorum, aimed at improving the quality of judgments and decisions.
At the same function, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said the Peaceful Assembly Act was meant to encourage freedom of expression.
He said there had been consultation with the various stakeholders including the Bar Council before the Act was passed.
“However, in consulting with the stakeholders, we are still governed by the Official Secrets Act. The bottom line is that there can never be a perfect' legislation.
“It can only ever hope to be a right' legislation to meet the exigencies of the relevant time.”
Star
PUTRAJAYA: A man who stole 11 cans of Tiger beer and Guinness stout was jailed for five years. And another man who had illegal possession of a dead tiger got away with a RM7,000 fine.
“Clearly our values are misplaced. Surely, our tigers are worth more than the 11 cans of Tiger beer,” Chief Justice Tan Sri Arifin Zakaria said when opening the 2012 Legal Year and Conference of Judges here Saturday.
To end this problem, specialised “environmental courts” may soon be introduced in the country to handle cases involving environmental crime.
Arifin said there should be an end to the lack of sensitivity to such crimes.
He said the judiciary would provide more training to its judges and officers on environmental law.
He also issued a stern reminder to members of the judiciary not to abuse their position and to avoid exposure to corrupt practices.
Judges and officers, he said, should continue to maintain the dignity and integrity of their office.
“We should at all times conduct ourselves in a manner befitting our position in society.
“Always bear in mind that your conduct, be it in private or in your official capacity, is subject to public scrutiny.
“In conducting a trial, do it with decorum,” he said.
Arifin also urged lawyers to stop making wild and baseless accusations against judges.
“This is because your words are taken seriously by the public. Such allegations may undermine the integrity of the judiciary,” he said.
He also announced that from this month, all criminal and civil appeals in the Federal Court would be heard by a five-man quorum, aimed at improving the quality of judgments and decisions.
At the same function, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail said the Peaceful Assembly Act was meant to encourage freedom of expression.
He said there had been consultation with the various stakeholders including the Bar Council before the Act was passed.
“However, in consulting with the stakeholders, we are still governed by the Official Secrets Act. The bottom line is that there can never be a perfect' legislation.
“It can only ever hope to be a right' legislation to meet the exigencies of the relevant time.”
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Composting plants to be set up in each residential area
December 8, 2011
Star
PENANG plans to take another step forward in its green campaign next year. A composting plant will be set up in each residential area to process food waste into liquid fertilisers.
State Health, Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said the facility would be paid for by the respective assemblyman’s allocation.
“The project which is based on 3As — availability, accessibility and affordability — will be available in residential areas as the state intends to expand its effort from hawker centres to households.
“By placing the composting plants within the community, we hope to make it more convenient for the people to bring their waste to be processed into fertilisers.
“The composting plant is meant to educate the people on the benefits of recycling,” he told a press conference after launching the Penang Eco-Town workshop at a hotel yesterday.
Benefits of recycling: (left) Makoto Fujita from Global Environment Centre delivering his speech at the Penang Eco-Town workshop
Phee added that the approach would be executed through four approaches — educate, create awareness, implement and enforce.
“However, we do not intend to impose strict regulations on the people because the commitment to go green should come from within ourselves.”
There are currently three composting plants which are at the Bagan Ajam market in Butterworth, Bayan Baru market in Penang and the Desa Damai resource centre in Bukit Mertajam.
On May 3, The Star reported that the pilot project at the Bagan Ajam market could process organic wastes into fertilisers within 24 hours.
Star
PENANG plans to take another step forward in its green campaign next year. A composting plant will be set up in each residential area to process food waste into liquid fertilisers.
State Health, Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said the facility would be paid for by the respective assemblyman’s allocation.
“The project which is based on 3As — availability, accessibility and affordability — will be available in residential areas as the state intends to expand its effort from hawker centres to households.
“By placing the composting plants within the community, we hope to make it more convenient for the people to bring their waste to be processed into fertilisers.
“The composting plant is meant to educate the people on the benefits of recycling,” he told a press conference after launching the Penang Eco-Town workshop at a hotel yesterday.
Benefits of recycling: (left) Makoto Fujita from Global Environment Centre delivering his speech at the Penang Eco-Town workshop
Phee added that the approach would be executed through four approaches — educate, create awareness, implement and enforce.
“However, we do not intend to impose strict regulations on the people because the commitment to go green should come from within ourselves.”
There are currently three composting plants which are at the Bagan Ajam market in Butterworth, Bayan Baru market in Penang and the Desa Damai resource centre in Bukit Mertajam.
On May 3, The Star reported that the pilot project at the Bagan Ajam market could process organic wastes into fertilisers within 24 hours.
Thursday, December 01, 2011
Pahang govt ‘killing’ Tasik Chini’s ecosystem
Aneesa Alphonsus
November 30, 2011
freemalaysiatoday.com
The legendary Tasik Chini’s more modern saga concerns ecological mismanagement and the near collapse of a delicate ecosystem.
FEATURE
Mystical Tasik Chini, which once spawned a legendary tale of a behemoth dragon or sea serpent called Naga Seri Gumum and the presence of the Sacred Lotus Nelumbo Nucifera is deeply polluted and the Pahang government is to be blamed.
Chini which is made up by a series of 12 lakes is not so much a lake but more of a naturally dammed tributary of the Pahang River.
Until recently the lake’s waters rose and fell with the seasons. During the rainy season the waters were unable to flow down the narrow Sungai Chini and so became backed up in a series of lakes.
This resulted in a unique ecosystem, dominated by the presence of the Sacred Lotus Nelumbo Nucifera which once covered the entire surface of the lake system.
During low waters the lotus seeds would germinate, their roots would take hold in the soft mud and the stunning blooms would appear on the water’s surface.
During the monsoonal floods, from October to January, the lotus would die but their fertilized new seeds would litter the lake bottom waiting the dry season to bloom again.
This exquisite cycle is however damned.
In 1995, the state government, in a bid to commercialize the area and make the lakes more appealing to visitors in the dry season, built a dam at the point where Sungai Chini entered the Pahang River. The structure stopped the free flow of water which was never able to recede again.
It wasn’t long before the Tasik Chini natural ecosystem started showing signs of stress.
Species going extinct
According to Azimudin Bahari, who is with the natural resources and environment ministry, studies have shown that the lake is polluted.
“The scientific studies by the Tasik Chini Research Centre in University Kebangsaan Malaysia clearly show several indicators of a more polluted freshwater lake. Lotus is increasingly extinct and tourist arrivals to Tasik Chini are declining.
“With the rapid decline of this lake, many species of freshwater fish have become extinct.
“The loss of fish not only deprives the communities of an important source of protein, but also has resulted in the loss of traditional fishing methods.”
Azimudin was speaking on the matter at the Care To Action: Multi-Pronged Strategy Needed To Reverse The Decline of Tasik Chini Workshop organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TMI) recently.
He said the suggested multi-pronged strategies however should be based on the principles of sustainability, good governance and recognition of the community particularly the Jakun Orang Asli tribe as the guardians of the locality.
He said the aspiration and cultural practices of the local community must be respected in the economic development of the Tasik Chini area.
There is hope
Despite the less than heartening prognosis, there might still hope for Tasik Chini.
But much of this hope hinges on whether the Pahang government will take the necessary measures to stop the sources of pollution and restore the free flow of water into the lake from Sungai Chini and Sungai Pahang.
Many are of the view that a collective effort between the authorities and the locals is needed to rehabilitate the lake.
The Orang Asli and other conscientious residents around the area have already made it their business to remove weeds called Ekor Kucing (Cat’s Tail) which are choking and absorbing the oxygen in the water.
Ailee Jane, a frequent visitor to Chini, opined that the authorities should remove the dam to allow the lake to heal itself naturally.
“The lake is dying a natural death because of the weir. It is polluted and there is so much of sedimentation.”
Urgent need to resuscitate lake
TMI secretary general Josie Fernandez said that the catchment area around Tasik Chini is being destroyed because of certain kinds of fertilizers which go into the water.
Residents, mostly the Orang Asli, use this water for cooking, bathing and drinking, thereby resulting in skin afflictions.
“Tin ore mining is yet another culprit,” she said, adding that “water from the waste flows into the lake which results in the loss of the fish which is a cheap source of protein.
“There is a story of an Orang Asli who went out early in the morning to catch some fish and only came back with one. He asked how was he going to share that one fish with the other seven families in his village.
“The thing about the Orang Asli at Chini is that they observe sustainable use of the natural resources.
“It’s never about huge profits where they are concerned, and definitely not about enterprise. They don’t do it to destroy the area.
“There really should be more accountability and Chini should be protected as an eco-tourism area. There is an urgent need to resuscitate what has been lost,” said Fernandez
Buy land back from Felda
Fernandez firmly believes that that all development in the catchment area should be stopped and if necessary, land should be bought back from Felda.
“In any development, there should be equity for all, for people and nature and a balance of the two must exist.
“This has been overlooked in previous policies pertaining to development and conservation of Chini.
“It’s our collective responsibly to resolve and go to the very source of the problem which lie in the way the catchment areas have been developed.
“This is not just an environmental issue but more of one concerning governance,” she said.
November 30, 2011
freemalaysiatoday.com
The legendary Tasik Chini’s more modern saga concerns ecological mismanagement and the near collapse of a delicate ecosystem.
FEATURE
Mystical Tasik Chini, which once spawned a legendary tale of a behemoth dragon or sea serpent called Naga Seri Gumum and the presence of the Sacred Lotus Nelumbo Nucifera is deeply polluted and the Pahang government is to be blamed.
Chini which is made up by a series of 12 lakes is not so much a lake but more of a naturally dammed tributary of the Pahang River.
Until recently the lake’s waters rose and fell with the seasons. During the rainy season the waters were unable to flow down the narrow Sungai Chini and so became backed up in a series of lakes.
This resulted in a unique ecosystem, dominated by the presence of the Sacred Lotus Nelumbo Nucifera which once covered the entire surface of the lake system.
During low waters the lotus seeds would germinate, their roots would take hold in the soft mud and the stunning blooms would appear on the water’s surface.
During the monsoonal floods, from October to January, the lotus would die but their fertilized new seeds would litter the lake bottom waiting the dry season to bloom again.
This exquisite cycle is however damned.
In 1995, the state government, in a bid to commercialize the area and make the lakes more appealing to visitors in the dry season, built a dam at the point where Sungai Chini entered the Pahang River. The structure stopped the free flow of water which was never able to recede again.
It wasn’t long before the Tasik Chini natural ecosystem started showing signs of stress.
Species going extinct
According to Azimudin Bahari, who is with the natural resources and environment ministry, studies have shown that the lake is polluted.
“The scientific studies by the Tasik Chini Research Centre in University Kebangsaan Malaysia clearly show several indicators of a more polluted freshwater lake. Lotus is increasingly extinct and tourist arrivals to Tasik Chini are declining.
“With the rapid decline of this lake, many species of freshwater fish have become extinct.
“The loss of fish not only deprives the communities of an important source of protein, but also has resulted in the loss of traditional fishing methods.”
Azimudin was speaking on the matter at the Care To Action: Multi-Pronged Strategy Needed To Reverse The Decline of Tasik Chini Workshop organised by Transparency International Malaysia (TMI) recently.
He said the suggested multi-pronged strategies however should be based on the principles of sustainability, good governance and recognition of the community particularly the Jakun Orang Asli tribe as the guardians of the locality.
He said the aspiration and cultural practices of the local community must be respected in the economic development of the Tasik Chini area.
There is hope
Despite the less than heartening prognosis, there might still hope for Tasik Chini.
But much of this hope hinges on whether the Pahang government will take the necessary measures to stop the sources of pollution and restore the free flow of water into the lake from Sungai Chini and Sungai Pahang.
Many are of the view that a collective effort between the authorities and the locals is needed to rehabilitate the lake.
The Orang Asli and other conscientious residents around the area have already made it their business to remove weeds called Ekor Kucing (Cat’s Tail) which are choking and absorbing the oxygen in the water.
Ailee Jane, a frequent visitor to Chini, opined that the authorities should remove the dam to allow the lake to heal itself naturally.
“The lake is dying a natural death because of the weir. It is polluted and there is so much of sedimentation.”
Urgent need to resuscitate lake
TMI secretary general Josie Fernandez said that the catchment area around Tasik Chini is being destroyed because of certain kinds of fertilizers which go into the water.
Residents, mostly the Orang Asli, use this water for cooking, bathing and drinking, thereby resulting in skin afflictions.
“Tin ore mining is yet another culprit,” she said, adding that “water from the waste flows into the lake which results in the loss of the fish which is a cheap source of protein.
“There is a story of an Orang Asli who went out early in the morning to catch some fish and only came back with one. He asked how was he going to share that one fish with the other seven families in his village.
“The thing about the Orang Asli at Chini is that they observe sustainable use of the natural resources.
“It’s never about huge profits where they are concerned, and definitely not about enterprise. They don’t do it to destroy the area.
“There really should be more accountability and Chini should be protected as an eco-tourism area. There is an urgent need to resuscitate what has been lost,” said Fernandez
Buy land back from Felda
Fernandez firmly believes that that all development in the catchment area should be stopped and if necessary, land should be bought back from Felda.
“In any development, there should be equity for all, for people and nature and a balance of the two must exist.
“This has been overlooked in previous policies pertaining to development and conservation of Chini.
“It’s our collective responsibly to resolve and go to the very source of the problem which lie in the way the catchment areas have been developed.
“This is not just an environmental issue but more of one concerning governance,” she said.
Sunday, October 09, 2011
An environmental performance index next year
October 14, 2011
Green light for EPI to gauge states
Star
GEORGE TOWN: Malaysia’s own Environmental Performance Index (EPI) which is designed to gauge the performance of each state in managing environmental issues is scheduled to be implemented by next year.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Unggah Embas said the Cabinet had given the green light for the EPI to be carried out comprehensively.
The project is a joint effort between the ministry and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
“We need a yardstick to gauge the performance of each state,” said Douglas.
“At the moment, everything is based on verbal commitments. For example, we cannot compare Selangor with Penang (on which state has done better in managing environmental issues). We need something concrete for this purpose,” he said after visiting the Penang Land and Mines Office in Komtar yesterday.
Douglas said the EPI would be developed in line with the Global Environmental Perfor-mance Index.
He said some of the parameters for the measurement include socio-economic sustainability, resources efficiency, environmental governance and awareness as well as behaviour of the people.
“We are trying to make it as simple as possible so that it can be understood by everyone,” he said.
Douglas also said that Penang’s “e-Tanah” system, an integrated online system for land management and administration, has seen 250,000 transactions being processed between Jan 1 and Sept 30 of this year.
He said the number of transactions had doubled compared to the corresponding period last year.
When visiting Sungai Petani, Douglas said the Sungai Muda flood mitigation project was 5% ahead of schedule and it is likely to be completed on time.
The RM420mil project started in 2007 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2013.
Douglas said that more than 850 families living along Sungai Muda would benefit when it is completed.
The project will alleviate flooding in the area where the river banks will be raised to avert the overflow of water from the river, especially during heavy rain.
“Look at Thailand, which is affected by the worst floods in its history. We do not want a similar situation here. The Federal Government is planning ahead for the people, he said.
------
Green light for EPI to gauge states
Star
GEORGE TOWN: Malaysia’s own Environmental Performance Index (EPI) which is designed to gauge the performance of each state in managing environmental issues is scheduled to be implemented by next year.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Unggah Embas said the Cabinet had given the green light for the EPI to be carried out comprehensively.
The project is a joint effort between the ministry and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
“We need a yardstick to gauge the performance of each state,” said Douglas.
“At the moment, everything is based on verbal commitments. For example, we cannot compare Selangor with Penang (on which state has done better in managing environmental issues). We need something concrete for this purpose,” he said after visiting the Penang Land and Mines Office in Komtar yesterday.
Douglas said the EPI would be developed in line with the Global Environmental Perfor-mance Index.
He said some of the parameters for the measurement include socio-economic sustainability, resources efficiency, environmental governance and awareness as well as behaviour of the people.
“We are trying to make it as simple as possible so that it can be understood by everyone,” he said.
Douglas also said that Penang’s “e-Tanah” system, an integrated online system for land management and administration, has seen 250,000 transactions being processed between Jan 1 and Sept 30 of this year.
He said the number of transactions had doubled compared to the corresponding period last year.
When visiting Sungai Petani, Douglas said the Sungai Muda flood mitigation project was 5% ahead of schedule and it is likely to be completed on time.
The RM420mil project started in 2007 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2013.
Douglas said that more than 850 families living along Sungai Muda would benefit when it is completed.
The project will alleviate flooding in the area where the river banks will be raised to avert the overflow of water from the river, especially during heavy rain.
“Look at Thailand, which is affected by the worst floods in its history. We do not want a similar situation here. The Federal Government is planning ahead for the people, he said.
------
Sunday October 9, 2011
KUCHING: The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is to develop an environmental performance index as a yardstick to gauge the environmental management performance of every state next year.
Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said the Malaysia Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2012 would be developed in collaboration with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) under the 10th Malaysia Plan (2011-2015).
He said the cabinet has agreed to the ministry's proposal, which also had the support of the various federal agencies.
"At the moment, we do not have an indicator on the public response to environmental issues, like climate change, being discussed by a lot of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) at dialogues and conferences, or the performances of local bodies like the Kuching City South Hall in managing solid and sewage waste disposal and number of acreages on trees planted," he said.
Speaking to reporters after officiating at the Kuching Division Journalists Association (KDJA) Car Boot Sale and Sports Day at the Kuching Integrated Sports Complex here, he said it would also help the ministry in terms of resource allocation and manpower needs.
Generally, Malaysia's standing is at 54th position among 163 countries worldwide under the Global EPI 2010 based on quantitative data obtained from the World Health Oganisation, United Nations Global Environmental Monitoring System, government agencies, NGOs and academia, he said.
The Malaysia EPI 2012 will also address issues pertaining to socio-economic sustainability as one of the data to include three categories of policy on resources efficiency, environmental governance as well as environmental awareness and behaviour. - Bernama
KUCHING: The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is to develop an environmental performance index as a yardstick to gauge the environmental management performance of every state next year.
Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said the Malaysia Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2012 would be developed in collaboration with Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) under the 10th Malaysia Plan (2011-2015).
He said the cabinet has agreed to the ministry's proposal, which also had the support of the various federal agencies.
"At the moment, we do not have an indicator on the public response to environmental issues, like climate change, being discussed by a lot of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) at dialogues and conferences, or the performances of local bodies like the Kuching City South Hall in managing solid and sewage waste disposal and number of acreages on trees planted," he said.
Speaking to reporters after officiating at the Kuching Division Journalists Association (KDJA) Car Boot Sale and Sports Day at the Kuching Integrated Sports Complex here, he said it would also help the ministry in terms of resource allocation and manpower needs.
Generally, Malaysia's standing is at 54th position among 163 countries worldwide under the Global EPI 2010 based on quantitative data obtained from the World Health Oganisation, United Nations Global Environmental Monitoring System, government agencies, NGOs and academia, he said.
The Malaysia EPI 2012 will also address issues pertaining to socio-economic sustainability as one of the data to include three categories of policy on resources efficiency, environmental governance as well as environmental awareness and behaviour. - Bernama
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
The Belum Sandiwara
Sandiwara means play acting. In Malaysia politicians are expert in sandiwara. Corruption and greed are two of the menace killing the environment and nature. When will they stop? Temenggor Forest Reserve is home to thousand of Plain pouched Hornbills....and this idiot just don't seem to understand the reason to gazette the forests! Tamby hoi, this PPHs need big trees to nest. Logging will make them homeless! Ada faham?
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Be reasonable with demands to gazette forests, says MB
September 20, 2011
Star
IPOH: Environmental and wildlife groups should be more objective when demanding that forested areas in the state be gazetted as non-logging areas, said Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
He said despite the state government having gazetted an area about five times the size of Singapore in Royal Belum as a state park, such groups were demanding more.
“Are they asking for the whole of Perak to be gazetted? After the Royal Belum, they now want us to gazette the whole of Temengor Forest Reserve.
“Later, they may also request forested areas in Pangkor to be gazetted.
“Let us be objective. Logging cannot be stopped completely because timber is one of the major industries which generate revenue for the state,” he told reporters after receiving a courtesy call from Japanese ambassador to Malaysia Shigeru Nakamura at his office here yesterday.
Dr Zambry was commenting on calls by such groups for forests along the Gerik-Jeli highway to be gazetted as part of the Royal Belum or a forest reserve to ensure the long-term survival of wildlife.
He said economic progress would be hindered if the state government were to fulfil all their demands.
Dr Zambry said Perak was among the few states that had a sustainable forest management concept.
“While allowing logging activities, we are also serious about protecting the state’s rainforests,” he stressed.
On the forest clearing activities in the Belum-Temengor wildlife corridor, Dr Zambry said he would wait for an in-depth probe to be completed first.
”We also want to know the actual situation and if the report is accurate,” he said
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September 20, 2011
‘Step up Belum enforcement’
By ISABELLE LAI
Star
PETALING JAYA: Intensified enforcement is needed to prevent poachers from encroaching into the Royal Belum State Park, said wildlife protection groups.
This is necessary following the clearing of a logging road in the major wildlife corridor.
The groups called for coordinated patrols to be heightened.
WWF-Malaysia executive director and chief executive officer Datuk Dr Dionysius Sharma said the logging road in the Sungai Mendelum area was easily accessible from the Gerik-Jeli highway.
He said the organisation had previously raised the alarm on poaching snares discovered in state land forests in the Belum-Temengor Forest Complex (BTFC) a month ago.
“The wire snares were camouflaged so well that a team assistant’s foot got caught,” he said in a statement yesterday, adding that a camera-trap placed in the area had captured a photo of possible poachers.
Another camera-trap had captured a photo of a Malayan sun bear, which was missing one foot.
The injury was consistent with an animal who lost a limb while trying to free itself from a snare, he said.
The field team also heard three gunshots from a distance while they were in the area.
Malaysian Nature Society president Prof Dr Maketab Mohamed said illegal hunting and poaching were rampant in the area.
He said gazetting the entire BTFC was the only way to “truly protect” the area from illegal clearing and wildlife poaching.
“We should protect our natural heritage,” said Prof Maketab.
Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir earlier ordered a stop to all alleged land clearing activities in the Sungai Mendelum area pending a probe into the matter.
Environmentalists have called for a permanent halt to development plans as the area is frequently used by wildlife to cross from Royal Belum to the Temengor Forest Reserve.
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September 21, 2011
Strong case for Lower Belum and Temengor conservation
The Star Says
PERAK is extremely proud of the fact that it had in 2003 set aside 117,500ha of forest north of the East-West Highway as the Royal Belum State Park.
However, to the dismay of conservationists, the park excluded forests south of the highway, the Lower Belum and Temengor Forest Reserves, which both remain as “production forest reserve” destined for logging.
Also left out is the 1,820m width of state land on either side of the East-West Highway.
Plans to develop this state land are many.
They range from commercial crops and vegetable agriculture to orang asli farming schemes and construction of university campuses and research centres.
Scientists say leaving the forest reserves and state land unprotected is a mistake for they are important wild habitats too.
Royal Belum is just over a quarter of the 4,343sq km that make up Taman Negara and, on its own, is not sufficient for the survival of large mammals such as the elephant, rhinoceros and tiger.
It needs to be backed up by Lower Belum and Temengor.
The Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) even wants the adjacent Gerik and Lepang Nenering Forest Reserves to be added to the state park.
Collectively, these will create a sprawling, contiguous wild sanctuary.
Without the adjoining forests, Royal Belum is all but an island of wilderness in a sea of logged and farmed areas.
The East-West Highway has already sliced the wild area into two and obstructed animal movements. Wildlife migrating between Belum and Temengor have ended up as road kill.
And with increased human activity comes the opening of new roads which will give poachers easy access to wild areas. More and more snares and poachers' camps are being discovered in Belum-Temengor.
In the National Physical Plan, the whole of Hulu Perak is marked as a Rank 1 Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA), a ranking that disallows development, agriculture or logging.
This last large tract of forest in Perak is a final stronghold for wildlife.
It shelters 14 threatened mammals and an array of unique plants and animals. Internationally, Belum-Temengor is identified as a Tiger Conservation Landscape it is crucial for the long-term survival of the big cat.
The site has one of the world's greatest concentrations of hornbills 10 species are found here and the rare phenomenon of plain-pouched hornbills gathering by the thousands.
Temengor must not be seen only for its timber and land worth.
This is a mistake: the Malaysian Nature Society had a few years ago estimated that timber yields amount to only between RM58mil and RM250mil annually, whereas the other products and ecological services which the forest provides such as water supply, tourism, non-timber forest products, carbon sink, pharmaceuticals, flood control, fisheries and electricity generation are worth some RM1bil to RM1.2bil.
Keeping Belum-Temengor intact, therefore, seems to make sense.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Do you still want nuclear plants in Malaysia, Najib?
A nuclear melt down. Photo source here13 March 2011 09:24
Written by Mariam Mokhtar,
Malaysia Chronicle
Photos of Japan’s nuclear power plants glowing orange, with fires raging and white plumes of smoke rising above the remains of each complex, should produce some soul-searching in Prime minister Najib Abdul Razak. But probably not!
Last May, Najib’s cabinet approved the construction of the country’s first nuclear power plant; two nuclear power stations are to be ready by 2022. Malaysia is now reliant on fossil fuels for its electricity supply; gas accounts for 64 percent of the total energy generation; the rest comes from coal.
Despite protests from environmental activists who accuse the government of not thoroughly considering other forms of energy generation such as solar, hydroelectric and wind power, Najib is set on two 1,000 megawatt nuclear power plants, to counter an “imbalance” in its energy supplies.
The Energy Minister, Peter Chin dismissed suggestions for renewable forms of energy: “Yes, very good, everyone wants to say that we want renewables, but what about cost? Can we force the people to accept high tariffs?”
Perhaps Najib and his cabinet might want to reflect on events in Japan. He should scrap his nuclear ambitions and consider the human cost as well as cost to the environment.
March 11 2011 was when the world got an apocalyptic reminder of the devastating power of a tsunami when the massive undersea earthquake generated a destructive wave in the Pacific Ocean.
The Japanese and the rest of the world, witnessed the horrors of the earthquake which left thousand dead, and thousands more missing.
On March 12th the Japanese faced another danger: a nuclear accident.
Two nuclear plants near the coast reported emergency situations following the failure of systems to cool five nuclear reactors that had overheated. There was no electric power to circulate cooling water over superheated uranium fuel rods.
Then came the alarming announcements from the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) that it had lost the ability to control pressure at several reactors and that it was having trouble with a valve that would allow reactor pressure to be eased.
As a precautionary measure, thousands of residents were evacuated from the immediate area of the Fukushima plants, about 150 miles north of Tokyo.
Najib will definitely use the argument that Malaysia is not on the “Pacific Ring of Fire” and that we do not have earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. He will also say that local experts and foreign expertise will be on hand to man and manage our nuclear plants.
The Japanese work culture is very different from ours. Malaysians are “tidak apa” types, unlike the Japanese who are more dedicated, better team players and who display absolute loyalty to their companies.
Even with the best will in the world and even with the best technology, things have gone wrong for the Japanese. Apart from the power and valve problems, what other things have the authorities hidden from us, so as to avoid panic or embarrassment?
Malaysia’s greatest problem is not its geographical location. That is the least of our problems. Ours is the integrity of the people.
Our work culture is a culture of “anything goes”, where cover-ups are common, and where the “you scratch mine, I scratch yours” mentality prevails. These are more dangerous than being in an earthquake or volcanic activity region.
If we needed convincing of the integrity of our professionals see how recent court cases have exposed our chemists, investigating officers and forensic pathologists. They have broken many of the rules which their jobs and occupations demand of them. But then, they only take their cue from the top - our leaders lend themselves to abuses of power and pretend that serious crimes, like murder and rape never happened.
Najib is keen on nuclear power. What if our so-called professionals behave just like the “experts” we have seen in court? Their slip-shod methods and their sloppy attitude towards work will endanger lives and the environment.
Being good at cover-ups is almost a national disease. Billion dollar projects have failed and yet no one is made accountable. Even when lives have been lost, like Kugan, Aminulrasyid or Teoh Beng Hock, no one was found responsible.
Oftentimes, the scapegoat is someone insignificant at the bottom of the chain of command. These scapegoats are incarcerated for a few weeks or months, and enjoy a career revival after their releases.
Najib is also aware that in our country, people can be paid to “approve” things even when the conditions are not right. These include judges and heads of departments who issue the relevant permits.
There are very few people left with any integrity and self-respect, in our professions. So it is very difficult for the public to respect them.
Japan’s superior infrastructure and sophisticated technology are second to none. Even that did not prevent problems in the nuclear power plants.
In Malaysia, our problems with construction, equipment and maintenance are manifold. Our experience shows that we will have paid for a sophisticated system but what we get is the inferior product. There will be short-cuts taken in construction. There will be questionable business practices. After the various “commissions” are paid, only a pitiful amount remains.
Corruption in Malaysia has devastating effects, comparable to earthquakes elsewhere.
Will Najib realise that a nuclear power plant is a different behemoth altogether?
Environmental groups have said that the threat of a radiation leak underscored the general risks from atomic energy.
“We’ve opposed nuclear power for decades, and this is another proof that it can’t be safe,” said Sven Teske, director of renewable energy at Greenpeace International.
Written by Mariam Mokhtar,
Malaysia Chronicle
Photos of Japan’s nuclear power plants glowing orange, with fires raging and white plumes of smoke rising above the remains of each complex, should produce some soul-searching in Prime minister Najib Abdul Razak. But probably not!
Last May, Najib’s cabinet approved the construction of the country’s first nuclear power plant; two nuclear power stations are to be ready by 2022. Malaysia is now reliant on fossil fuels for its electricity supply; gas accounts for 64 percent of the total energy generation; the rest comes from coal.
Despite protests from environmental activists who accuse the government of not thoroughly considering other forms of energy generation such as solar, hydroelectric and wind power, Najib is set on two 1,000 megawatt nuclear power plants, to counter an “imbalance” in its energy supplies.
The Energy Minister, Peter Chin dismissed suggestions for renewable forms of energy: “Yes, very good, everyone wants to say that we want renewables, but what about cost? Can we force the people to accept high tariffs?”
Perhaps Najib and his cabinet might want to reflect on events in Japan. He should scrap his nuclear ambitions and consider the human cost as well as cost to the environment.
March 11 2011 was when the world got an apocalyptic reminder of the devastating power of a tsunami when the massive undersea earthquake generated a destructive wave in the Pacific Ocean.
The Japanese and the rest of the world, witnessed the horrors of the earthquake which left thousand dead, and thousands more missing.
On March 12th the Japanese faced another danger: a nuclear accident.
Two nuclear plants near the coast reported emergency situations following the failure of systems to cool five nuclear reactors that had overheated. There was no electric power to circulate cooling water over superheated uranium fuel rods.
Then came the alarming announcements from the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) that it had lost the ability to control pressure at several reactors and that it was having trouble with a valve that would allow reactor pressure to be eased.
As a precautionary measure, thousands of residents were evacuated from the immediate area of the Fukushima plants, about 150 miles north of Tokyo.
Najib will definitely use the argument that Malaysia is not on the “Pacific Ring of Fire” and that we do not have earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. He will also say that local experts and foreign expertise will be on hand to man and manage our nuclear plants.
The Japanese work culture is very different from ours. Malaysians are “tidak apa” types, unlike the Japanese who are more dedicated, better team players and who display absolute loyalty to their companies.
Even with the best will in the world and even with the best technology, things have gone wrong for the Japanese. Apart from the power and valve problems, what other things have the authorities hidden from us, so as to avoid panic or embarrassment?
Malaysia’s greatest problem is not its geographical location. That is the least of our problems. Ours is the integrity of the people.
Our work culture is a culture of “anything goes”, where cover-ups are common, and where the “you scratch mine, I scratch yours” mentality prevails. These are more dangerous than being in an earthquake or volcanic activity region.
If we needed convincing of the integrity of our professionals see how recent court cases have exposed our chemists, investigating officers and forensic pathologists. They have broken many of the rules which their jobs and occupations demand of them. But then, they only take their cue from the top - our leaders lend themselves to abuses of power and pretend that serious crimes, like murder and rape never happened.
Najib is keen on nuclear power. What if our so-called professionals behave just like the “experts” we have seen in court? Their slip-shod methods and their sloppy attitude towards work will endanger lives and the environment.
Being good at cover-ups is almost a national disease. Billion dollar projects have failed and yet no one is made accountable. Even when lives have been lost, like Kugan, Aminulrasyid or Teoh Beng Hock, no one was found responsible.
Oftentimes, the scapegoat is someone insignificant at the bottom of the chain of command. These scapegoats are incarcerated for a few weeks or months, and enjoy a career revival after their releases.
Najib is also aware that in our country, people can be paid to “approve” things even when the conditions are not right. These include judges and heads of departments who issue the relevant permits.
There are very few people left with any integrity and self-respect, in our professions. So it is very difficult for the public to respect them.
Japan’s superior infrastructure and sophisticated technology are second to none. Even that did not prevent problems in the nuclear power plants.
In Malaysia, our problems with construction, equipment and maintenance are manifold. Our experience shows that we will have paid for a sophisticated system but what we get is the inferior product. There will be short-cuts taken in construction. There will be questionable business practices. After the various “commissions” are paid, only a pitiful amount remains.
Corruption in Malaysia has devastating effects, comparable to earthquakes elsewhere.
Will Najib realise that a nuclear power plant is a different behemoth altogether?
Environmental groups have said that the threat of a radiation leak underscored the general risks from atomic energy.
“We’ve opposed nuclear power for decades, and this is another proof that it can’t be safe,” said Sven Teske, director of renewable energy at Greenpeace International.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
On Kuantan Rare-earth: Which drink would you prefer?
According to their reasoning, it is less toxic than the one in Bukit Merah. Common, idiot... toxic is already toxic no matter it is less, diluted, or whatever...it is still TOXIC! Dumboo! Now, tell me would you choose Drink B?Any sane person would only choose drink A. But in Malaysia, just because they want to outdo FDI of Selangor, Penang and Kedah (the opposition states), they welcome toxic industries to Malaysia. Want to be the world exporter kononnya. Want to outdo China pula.
We are not worry about the plant, but worry about the enforcement of rules and regulations that always gone disarray....afterall it has always been Malaysia Boleh! Pay and everything is OK!
Try build one at Pekan near Najib's home. Boleh ke?
Admin
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Aussie miner defends Kuantan rare-earth refinery: Less toxic than Bt Merah
Australian mining company Lynas Corporation moved last night to allay fears that its new refinery in Kuantan may repeat the environmental damage of Malaysia’s last rare earth plant, which is still being cleaned up nearly two decades after it was shut down.
Corporate and business development vice president Matthew James claimed the plant would involve lower levels of radiation than the Bukit Merah facility that has been linked to at least eight cases of leukaemia in the area.
“The key difference from Bukit Merah was that it used amang (tin tailings) that has 50 times the level of thorium of our raw material,” James said, referring to the radioactive element found in virtually all rare earth deposits.
He said the ore from the company’s mine in Mount Weld, Australia, would only contain 1,600 parts per million (ppm) of thorium as opposed to the 80,000 ppm in the amang used in the Bukit Merah plant set up in 1985.
Common signs of acute leukaemia. — WikiCommons The New York Times reported yesterday that the US$230 million plant (RM700 million) refinery will be the first such plant outside China in nearly three decades.
The rest of the world has been wary of the environmental hazards involved in their production, leaving China to control 95 per cent of global supply of rare earth metals.
The metals are crucial to high technology products such as the Apple iPhone, Toyota Prius and Boeing’s smart bombs.
The newspaper said that if prices of the metals stayed at current levels, the Lynas plant would generate over RM5 billion a year in exports for Malaysia, or nearly one per cent of its entire economy.
However, it also reported that Mitsubishi Chemical, which closed down its Bukit Merah factory in 1992 following steady protests by residents over pollution, is now quietly removing radioactive material from the site at a cost of US$100 million.
Nearby residents had blamed the rare earth refiner for birth defects and eight leukaemia cases within five years in a community of 11,000 — after many years with no leukaemia cases. Seven of the leukaemia victims have since died.
James, in the telephone interview, claimed that the factory would only expose its workers to 0.2 millisieverts per year of additional radiation. The normal radiation an average person would experience is 2 millisieverts per year.
He added that no special protective equipment would be required for the workers.
James also insisted that there was no concern over disposal of waste from processing the raw material.
He said that the facility could store six years’ worth of what he called “synthetic mineral product.”
Lynas is planning to reprocess the residuals into industrial products with only one, a cement mixture for road-building, containing thorium, said James.
He claimed that the cement would only contain 500 ppm of the radioactive element, the maximum permitted under international standards to allow the material to be disposed with few restrictions.
He also said the project has been approved by Malaysia’s Atomic Energy Licensing Board, and that reports and studies were presented to the local public.
In the New York Times piece yesterday, Raja Datuk Abdul Aziz Raja Adnan, the director-general of the regulatory board, had said the project was only approved after an inter-agency review.
He said the report indicated that the imported ore and subsequent waste would have low enough levels of radioactivity to be manageable and safe.
“We have learned we shouldn’t give anybody a free hand,” Raja Adnan told the newspaper.
James added that the company chose Malaysia instead of refining the ore in Australia, due to savings in already available infrastructure and labour.
He said that the plant would need a larger supply of water, natural gas, industrial land and chemicals such as lime and sulphuric and hydrochloric acid — all readily available in Malaysia.
“Each container contains about US$1 million of rare earth so the transport cost is negligible,” James said.
James also said that the Kuantan facility, located in the Gebeng industrial area, will be the largest rare earth processing plant in the world once completed next year.
- Malaysian Insider
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Rare earth refinery slammed: Surely, we cannot be that desperate for FDI
Written by New Jo-Lyn,
Malaysia Chronicle
When Malaysian authorities quietly granted an Australian firm Lynas the licence to build a rare earth refinery at an industrial center in Gebeng, Kuantan, it revived bad memories of the radioactive contamination that occured in Bukit Merah, Perak some 2 decades ago which was blamed for the deaths of at least 7 people.
It has also spurred enviromentalists and opposition politicians into fierce action.
“The level of awareness regarding this issue is being raised only now, after I had gone to the New York Times who agreed to run the story,” Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh told Malaysia Chronicle on Thursday.
Bad record of enforcement and integrity
She was also worried about the poor quality of enforcement in Malaysia and the consequences of negligence in managing the radioactive waste.
The US$230 million Pahang refinery will be the first processing plant to be built outside of China in nearly three decades after governments around the world rejected rare earth mining facilities on fears that they might turn into public health hazards.
Lynas’s executive chairman, Nicholas Curtis, had told the New York Times that building and operating a rare earth refinery in Australia would cost four times as much. He also said that Australia could not host the facility as it was home to an environmentally minded and politically powerful Green party.
Later, at a separate interview with a Malaysian news portal, he assured that Lynas would be much "safer" than Bukit Merah.
“The key difference from Bukit Merah was that it used amang (tin tailings) that has 50 times the level of thorium of our raw material,” James said, referring to the radioactive element found in virtually all rare earth deposits.
His remarks immeduately set up the backs of Malaysian enviromentalists, who immediately condemned the move and Prime Minister Najib Razak's administration for taking chances with public safety. They compared the Malaysian government's apathy poorly with stringent Australian standards.
“Why would Lynas, who before this had operated in China, now want to move its operation to Malaysia, instead of processing the material in its own country, Australia?” demanded Fuziah, who is also the vice president of PKR.
Surely, we cannot be that desperate
According to Fuziah, lathanides (the scientific name for rare earth) can produce a low or mid-level grade of radioactive deposit.
She insisted that Malaysia should err on the side of caution even though the Malaysian Atomic Energy Licensing Board had approved the Lynas project after an inter-agency review indicated the radioactive ore at Pahang and its subsequent waste were manageable and safe.
Fuziah urged Najib to remember the debacle of Japanese company Mitsubishi Chemical in Bukit Merah. The firm had failed to dispose of low-level radioactive waste properly, exposing local residents to radioactive properties.
Residents there have suffered high cancer rates, premature and deformed births, and miscarriages. The locality's record surpassed the average nationwide rate.
If a similar leakage occurs at the Pahang refinery, it would pollute the nearby Sg Balok and ultimately the marine life in the South China Sea, Fuziah warned.
Lynas expects its new refinery to meet nearly one-third of the world’s demand for rare earth, which is used to produce goods such as mobile phones, batteries for hybrid and electric cars, wind turbines, and missile guidance systems, within two years of completion.
It also means that Malaysia will have the dubious distinction of being home to the world's largest rare earth processing plant once it is completed.
"We do welcome foreign direct investment, but surely, we cannot be that desperate. Public health and safety are paramount and so is the environment because that is what we will leave behind for our children to inherit," PKR MP for Gopeng Lee Boon Chye told Malaysia Chronicle.
Australian mining company Lynas Corporation moved last night to allay fears that its new refinery in Kuantan may repeat the environmental damage of Malaysia’s last rare earth plant, which is still being cleaned up nearly two decades after it was shut down.
Corporate and business development vice president Matthew James claimed the plant would involve lower levels of radiation than the Bukit Merah facility that has been linked to at least eight cases of leukaemia in the area.
“The key difference from Bukit Merah was that it used amang (tin tailings) that has 50 times the level of thorium of our raw material,” James said, referring to the radioactive element found in virtually all rare earth deposits.
He said the ore from the company’s mine in Mount Weld, Australia, would only contain 1,600 parts per million (ppm) of thorium as opposed to the 80,000 ppm in the amang used in the Bukit Merah plant set up in 1985.
Common signs of acute leukaemia. — WikiCommons The New York Times reported yesterday that the US$230 million plant (RM700 million) refinery will be the first such plant outside China in nearly three decades.
The rest of the world has been wary of the environmental hazards involved in their production, leaving China to control 95 per cent of global supply of rare earth metals.
The metals are crucial to high technology products such as the Apple iPhone, Toyota Prius and Boeing’s smart bombs.
The newspaper said that if prices of the metals stayed at current levels, the Lynas plant would generate over RM5 billion a year in exports for Malaysia, or nearly one per cent of its entire economy.
However, it also reported that Mitsubishi Chemical, which closed down its Bukit Merah factory in 1992 following steady protests by residents over pollution, is now quietly removing radioactive material from the site at a cost of US$100 million.
Nearby residents had blamed the rare earth refiner for birth defects and eight leukaemia cases within five years in a community of 11,000 — after many years with no leukaemia cases. Seven of the leukaemia victims have since died.
James, in the telephone interview, claimed that the factory would only expose its workers to 0.2 millisieverts per year of additional radiation. The normal radiation an average person would experience is 2 millisieverts per year.
He added that no special protective equipment would be required for the workers.
James also insisted that there was no concern over disposal of waste from processing the raw material.
He said that the facility could store six years’ worth of what he called “synthetic mineral product.”
Lynas is planning to reprocess the residuals into industrial products with only one, a cement mixture for road-building, containing thorium, said James.
He claimed that the cement would only contain 500 ppm of the radioactive element, the maximum permitted under international standards to allow the material to be disposed with few restrictions.
He also said the project has been approved by Malaysia’s Atomic Energy Licensing Board, and that reports and studies were presented to the local public.
In the New York Times piece yesterday, Raja Datuk Abdul Aziz Raja Adnan, the director-general of the regulatory board, had said the project was only approved after an inter-agency review.
He said the report indicated that the imported ore and subsequent waste would have low enough levels of radioactivity to be manageable and safe.
“We have learned we shouldn’t give anybody a free hand,” Raja Adnan told the newspaper.
James added that the company chose Malaysia instead of refining the ore in Australia, due to savings in already available infrastructure and labour.
He said that the plant would need a larger supply of water, natural gas, industrial land and chemicals such as lime and sulphuric and hydrochloric acid — all readily available in Malaysia.
“Each container contains about US$1 million of rare earth so the transport cost is negligible,” James said.
James also said that the Kuantan facility, located in the Gebeng industrial area, will be the largest rare earth processing plant in the world once completed next year.
- Malaysian Insider
---------
Rare earth refinery slammed: Surely, we cannot be that desperate for FDI
Written by New Jo-Lyn,
Malaysia Chronicle
When Malaysian authorities quietly granted an Australian firm Lynas the licence to build a rare earth refinery at an industrial center in Gebeng, Kuantan, it revived bad memories of the radioactive contamination that occured in Bukit Merah, Perak some 2 decades ago which was blamed for the deaths of at least 7 people.
It has also spurred enviromentalists and opposition politicians into fierce action.
“The level of awareness regarding this issue is being raised only now, after I had gone to the New York Times who agreed to run the story,” Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh told Malaysia Chronicle on Thursday.
Bad record of enforcement and integrity
She was also worried about the poor quality of enforcement in Malaysia and the consequences of negligence in managing the radioactive waste.
The US$230 million Pahang refinery will be the first processing plant to be built outside of China in nearly three decades after governments around the world rejected rare earth mining facilities on fears that they might turn into public health hazards.
Lynas’s executive chairman, Nicholas Curtis, had told the New York Times that building and operating a rare earth refinery in Australia would cost four times as much. He also said that Australia could not host the facility as it was home to an environmentally minded and politically powerful Green party.
Later, at a separate interview with a Malaysian news portal, he assured that Lynas would be much "safer" than Bukit Merah.
“The key difference from Bukit Merah was that it used amang (tin tailings) that has 50 times the level of thorium of our raw material,” James said, referring to the radioactive element found in virtually all rare earth deposits.
His remarks immeduately set up the backs of Malaysian enviromentalists, who immediately condemned the move and Prime Minister Najib Razak's administration for taking chances with public safety. They compared the Malaysian government's apathy poorly with stringent Australian standards.
“Why would Lynas, who before this had operated in China, now want to move its operation to Malaysia, instead of processing the material in its own country, Australia?” demanded Fuziah, who is also the vice president of PKR.
Surely, we cannot be that desperate
According to Fuziah, lathanides (the scientific name for rare earth) can produce a low or mid-level grade of radioactive deposit.
She insisted that Malaysia should err on the side of caution even though the Malaysian Atomic Energy Licensing Board had approved the Lynas project after an inter-agency review indicated the radioactive ore at Pahang and its subsequent waste were manageable and safe.
Fuziah urged Najib to remember the debacle of Japanese company Mitsubishi Chemical in Bukit Merah. The firm had failed to dispose of low-level radioactive waste properly, exposing local residents to radioactive properties.
Residents there have suffered high cancer rates, premature and deformed births, and miscarriages. The locality's record surpassed the average nationwide rate.
If a similar leakage occurs at the Pahang refinery, it would pollute the nearby Sg Balok and ultimately the marine life in the South China Sea, Fuziah warned.
Lynas expects its new refinery to meet nearly one-third of the world’s demand for rare earth, which is used to produce goods such as mobile phones, batteries for hybrid and electric cars, wind turbines, and missile guidance systems, within two years of completion.
It also means that Malaysia will have the dubious distinction of being home to the world's largest rare earth processing plant once it is completed.
"We do welcome foreign direct investment, but surely, we cannot be that desperate. Public health and safety are paramount and so is the environment because that is what we will leave behind for our children to inherit," PKR MP for Gopeng Lee Boon Chye told Malaysia Chronicle.
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MCLM wants rare earth plant EIA made public
By Melissa Chi
KUALA LUMPUR, March 10 — The Najib administration should make public the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report for a RM700 million rare earth refinery in Kuantan and safeguards to prevent a radioactive disaster, a civil group demanded today.
Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) president Haris Ibrahim said even with assurances from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, there needs to be a proper study to prove that the refining plant will not leave harmful side effects.
“We want to know why Malaysia is hosting dirty industries belonging to other countries and why the government is allowing the country to be used by foreign companies in such a manner.
“We want to know what safeguard measures are in place to ensure there will be no radioactive disaster,” he said in a statement today.
The Malaysian Insider reported assurances about the refinery safety from the Australian mining company Lynas, which is building the plant near Kuantan, the capital of Najib’s home state Pahang. News of the refinery was first reported by the New York Times yesterday.
“Datuk Seri Najib Razak has given the assurance that there are safeguards in place to ensure that there will not be radioactive leakages from the new Australian-owned rare earth refining plant in Kuantan and that the waste will be disposed of properly.
“However, he fails to realise that radioactive waste poses an enormously difficult problem which to date no country has solved. Even France, the country where at least 80 per cent of its energy is nuclear energy, has problems with waste. This despite the fact that their engineering is a point of national pride,” Haris (picture) pointed out.
He charged that Malaysia has not yet proven itself in the area of radioactive waste management with its only experience being the Asia Rare Earth plant in Bukit Merah in the 1980s.
“During then too the government failed to avert a radioactive disaster involving the rare earth plant in Bukit Merah, Ipoh, despite warnings of danger from the Bukit Merah New Village residents, lawyers and activists.
“There were numerous cases of leukaemia, miscarriages, babies born with deformities and early deaths, and the effects are still felt to this day,” Haris said.
The New York Times report that the Lynas refinery in Kuantan could break China’s chokehold on rare earth metals that are crucial to high technology products such as Apple’s iPhone, the Toyota Prius and Boeing’s smart bombs, said the newspaper.
The Bukit Merah Asian Rare Earth plant near Ipoh was also reported by the New York Times to be still quietly undergoing a US$100 million (RM300 million) cleanup exercise despite shutting down in 1992.
The New York paper also reported that as many as 2,500 workers are rushing to complete the US$230 million plant in Gebeng, near Kuantan, that will refine slightly radioactive ore from Australia.
“The fact that the new refinery will generate RM5 billion a year in exports starting late next year which is equal to nearly one per cent of the entire Malaysian economy may be a tempting prospect. But not when human lives and safety are at stake,” said Haris.
He said the rare earth processing plant requires a lot of water each day — about three Olympic-size swimming pools per day.
“This water along with the waste will be flushed out into the nearby Sungai Balok. About 5km from the proposed plant site is a fishing village — Kampung Balok. The villagers, mainly Malays, supply fish for consumers in Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, Penang, Johor Baru and Singapore,” he said.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Papan - I have not forgotten too
I still remember the hardship faced by people in Papan, Perak. There were news everyday on that controversial dumpsite. Asian Rare Earth (ARE) produced television tube. There were huge demonstrations. Many were ISAed. People who don't live near Papan just couldn't care. I was in my 20s and was blur-blur over that hu-ha. I visited Papan a few years ago and the company ARE, was still around. Lately, Mahafiraun (aka Mamak Kutty) dares to reveal the truth. He was the one that caused all the problem and he is now telling us about the problem. What did he do then? Greatest liar on earth and also the most racist and also the most provocator of war (remember the Fortilla to Israel? - he was the organiser that like to jeopardise world peace). This is the most hypocrite creature on earth. He condemned people of Papan, he ISAed people of Papan and now he has the gut to tell about that danger. I don't know when he will repent. Can he?
Read the articles below. Google Asian Rare Earth to learn about this dark episode.
Sunday June 13, 2010
A long-drawn battle against ARE
Star
THE people of Papan demonstrated for two months in the town and along the main road and even sent a petition written in blood before the Government decided to negotiate with them.
Papan-Pusing-Siputeh Anti-Radioacative Waste Dump committee chairman Low Tong Hooi, 69, remembers that the people of Papan and nearby towns were determined to fight Asian Rare Earth Sdn Bhd (ARE) because the issue involved the health of their future generation.
Papan resident Lau Chin Yau, 73, said almost everybody in town was involved in the demonstrations.
“Tents were set up along the main road and the people, including many from Batu Gajah, Pusing, Siputeh and Lahat, took turns to be there round the clock. We had our meals at the site as bags of rice and lots of biscuits were donated by supporters,” she said.
Nine children suffering from various sicknesses including brain tumour and leukaemia were initially registered with the Perak Anti-Radioactive Committee. Five have since died.
Cheah Kok Leong is one of those alive. He receives RM150 each month from PARC chairman Hew Yoon Tat.
Cheah, 27, lives in Bukit Merah with his single mother Lam Lai Kuan, 68. He was born mentally retarded and almost blind, with cataracts in both eyes.
“I have to be at home with him to attend to his needs round the clock,” said Lam who had worked as a contract labourer in ARE while pregnant with Cheah.
“We were not informed about the materials processed there. Some people even used the waste as fertiliser, claiming that they were advised to do so by factory employees.”
A private practitioner, Dr T. Jayabalan, said he found 13 children from Bukit Merah suffering from leukaemia in 1984 and there was a high number of cancer cases among the 11,000 villagers.
Dr Jayabalan remembered that a survey he carried out in Bukit Merah showed the number of miscarriages in the village was high, adding that tests on a sample of 60 children revealed high levels of lead in their bloodstream.
However, his medical findings submitted in the villagers’ 1985 suit in the Ipoh High Court were dismissed by the judge.
------
Sunday June 13, 2010
Dumpsite danger
BY FOONG THIM LENG
Star
It has been 28 years but the people of Bukit Merah and Papan have not forgotten. Triggered by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s recent comments about the radioactive waste in Perak, The Star has unearthed some new developments there.
FOR almost 30 years, the country’s cache of dangerous radioactive waste has been stored in drums in a concrete facility – and not buried “deep in the ground” as claimed by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The former prime minister, commenting on the Government’s proposal to build a nuclear power plant, told a press conference on May 14 that there was ‘’a small amount’’ of nuclear waste buried in Perak and that the disposal site was still regarded unsafe.
‘’In Malaysia, we do have nuclear waste which perhaps the public is not aware of. We had to bury the amang, a by-product from tin mining.
‘’It is not radioactive but it is not good to handle. We had to bury it in Perak, deep in the ground. But the place is still not safe, and we have almost one square mile that is dangerous,” he said, adding that he did not know where the site was.
Following his remarks, The Star has discovered that 80,000 200-litre drums containing radioactive waste are currently being kept at the dump located in the Kledang Range behind Papan town. The site is about 3km from Bukit Merah and Papan and about 15km from Ipoh. And the waste is thorium hydroxide, not amang.
In fact, it is only January this year that work finally began on the building of a proper underground storage facility called an engineered cell (EC).
For the residents of Bukit Merah and Papan, Dr Mahathir’s acknowledgement of the danger comes as a bitter vindication of their long-drawn battle to stop Asian Rare Earth Sdn Bhd (ARE), a company located at the Bukit Merah Industrial Area in the 1980s, from disposing of its radioactive waste near their towns.
And if the rest of the country has forgotten what they went through 27 years ago, the people of Bukit Merah, Papan and other settlements have not.
Perak Anti-Radioactive Committee chairman Hew Yoon Tat took Dr Mahathir to task for seemingly making light of the matter.
“The waste was never buried and the amount is not small. I would also like to remind Dr Mahathir that the radioactive waste came from a company approved by the Government to process rare earth,” he said.
Hew, 66, a butcher from Bukit Merah, added that the ARE factory extracted yytrium from monazite, one of the minerals found in amang (tin tailings), which were exported for use in high technology products.
In the production process, thorium hydroxide was produced. Both monazite and the waste contained thorium, which has a half-life of 13.9 billion years.
“Cancer-causing radon gas is released during decay,” he added.
ARE, which started production in 1982, had constructed the facility in the Kledang Range after former Deputy Prime Minister Tun Musa Hitam declared a proposed dumpsite on a durian hill near settlements in Papan unsafe and ordered the company to look for an alternative site.
Countering Dr Mahathir’s statement that “perhaps the public is not aware” of the waste, Hew said: “People involved in the series of protests, court case, and those whose lives were affected by ARE will never forget.
“These are the people who had suffered illnesses, braved clashes with the police during demonstrations, were arrested under the Internal Security Act, spent time away from work to show support during protests in Papan, Bukit Merah, Kuala Lumpur, and even in Tokyo.”
Hew was arrested under the Internal Security Act during Operation Lalang in 1987.
Papan-Pusing-Siputeh Anti-Radioacative Waste Dump committee chairman Low Tong Hooi, 69, is also astounded by Dr Mahathir’s statements.
“Why is it only now that he has admitted the radioactive dump is dangerous? In 1984, he maintained that the poorly constructed trenches for the waste in Papan in 1984 were safe,” he said.
Low added that experts from America, Britain, Canada and Japan brought in with the help of Sahabat Alam Malaysia, Consumer Association of Penang and the Environmental Protection Society of Malaysia declared the factory and the dump unsafe but the Government preferred to heed another view.
Although the ARE factory ceased operations in 1994, the company still maintains an office in a Menglembu housing estate.
The Star has learnt that it was only nine years later, between 2003 and 2005, that a decommissioning and decontamination exercise was carried out at the factory.
ARE’s general manager (administration) Kazuhiko Nishikawa said that about 250,000 tonnes of contaminated equipment, concrete structure, soil and materials were removed and transported by specially designed lorries approved by the Atomic Energy Licensing Board to an engineered cell called EC1 constructed at the 41ha site in the Kledang Range at the back of Papan.
“AELB has confirmed that the former factory site has been fully cleaned and is free from radioactive contamination. The lot was returned to the state government last year,” he said in an interview.
Kazuhiko said the company was now carrying out a project to construct another engineered cell (EC2) next to EC1 to store the thorium hydroxide accumulated during ARE’s operations between May 1982 and July 1984. The EC2 will decommission the use of the present storage facility and dispose of everything underground to a depth of 10m, similar to EC1.
Details of the project took three years to be worked out and had been reviewed by local and international experts and approved by AELB, he said.
“The project was designed in accordance with international and Malaysian standards and regulations set by agencies such as the International Commission on Radiological Protection, the International Atomic Energy Agency, AELB and the Department of Occupational Safety and Health.
“It is also being monitored by the Perak Government and its consultant is the Malaysian Nuclear Agency,” he said.
Kazuhiko said 500,000 tonnes of contaminated materials comprising debris from the concrete facility which would be demolished, 80,000 drums of wastes, and soil would be sent to EC2.
ARE has tasked US-based environmental and geotechnical engineering design and construction services specialist GeoSyntec Consultants Inc and its Malaysian subsidiary, GSM Consultancy (M) Sdn Bhd, with the management and implementation of the project.
Work of the project commenced in January. AELB would supervise and inspect all works during construction and the Perak government, relevant state agencies, and the PARC would be briefed on its progress, said Kazuhiko.
GSM Consultancy (M) Sdn Bhd director Anthony Goh said EC1 had been properly designed and constructed, based on its monitoring over the past six years.
Goh said frequent monitoring at the site had been carried out since 1992 and the results reported to the AELB.
“We did not find any increase in the background level of radiation and radon gas. Tests on ground and surface water and vegetation in the area did not suggest any contamination,” said Goh.
He added that all those involved in EC2, scheduled for completion in 2013, would be given a dosimeter badge to check on contamination and would undergo medical check-ups every month.
“Mechanised handling of the drums and waste will be introduced when transferring into EC2. We will solidify and repack the waste if the drums are corroded,” he said.
He also said the operation did not pose any public risk as there was no one living within 2km from the site.
“The dump will have a 200m buffer zone from its fence where no human activities would be allowed,” he added.
Both the engineered cells would then be “capped” with a final single cover to ensure safe disposal and minimal impact to the environment, he added.
AELB will monitor the site for two years before it is handed to the state government for long-term management and maintenance to ensure security.
Kazuhiko added that ARE was bearing the cost for the project but declined to reveal the amount.
PARC’s Hew said no one could ensure that the dump would not pose any danger in the long run. He hoped that future state governments would not forget about the dump and would continue to monitor it for the sake of the people.
Read the articles below. Google Asian Rare Earth to learn about this dark episode.
Sunday June 13, 2010
A long-drawn battle against ARE
Star
THE people of Papan demonstrated for two months in the town and along the main road and even sent a petition written in blood before the Government decided to negotiate with them.
Papan-Pusing-Siputeh Anti-Radioacative Waste Dump committee chairman Low Tong Hooi, 69, remembers that the people of Papan and nearby towns were determined to fight Asian Rare Earth Sdn Bhd (ARE) because the issue involved the health of their future generation.
Papan resident Lau Chin Yau, 73, said almost everybody in town was involved in the demonstrations.
“Tents were set up along the main road and the people, including many from Batu Gajah, Pusing, Siputeh and Lahat, took turns to be there round the clock. We had our meals at the site as bags of rice and lots of biscuits were donated by supporters,” she said.
Nine children suffering from various sicknesses including brain tumour and leukaemia were initially registered with the Perak Anti-Radioactive Committee. Five have since died.
Cheah Kok Leong is one of those alive. He receives RM150 each month from PARC chairman Hew Yoon Tat.
Cheah, 27, lives in Bukit Merah with his single mother Lam Lai Kuan, 68. He was born mentally retarded and almost blind, with cataracts in both eyes.
“I have to be at home with him to attend to his needs round the clock,” said Lam who had worked as a contract labourer in ARE while pregnant with Cheah.
“We were not informed about the materials processed there. Some people even used the waste as fertiliser, claiming that they were advised to do so by factory employees.”
A private practitioner, Dr T. Jayabalan, said he found 13 children from Bukit Merah suffering from leukaemia in 1984 and there was a high number of cancer cases among the 11,000 villagers.
Dr Jayabalan remembered that a survey he carried out in Bukit Merah showed the number of miscarriages in the village was high, adding that tests on a sample of 60 children revealed high levels of lead in their bloodstream.
However, his medical findings submitted in the villagers’ 1985 suit in the Ipoh High Court were dismissed by the judge.
------
Sunday June 13, 2010
Dumpsite danger
BY FOONG THIM LENG
Star
It has been 28 years but the people of Bukit Merah and Papan have not forgotten. Triggered by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s recent comments about the radioactive waste in Perak, The Star has unearthed some new developments there.
FOR almost 30 years, the country’s cache of dangerous radioactive waste has been stored in drums in a concrete facility – and not buried “deep in the ground” as claimed by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
The former prime minister, commenting on the Government’s proposal to build a nuclear power plant, told a press conference on May 14 that there was ‘’a small amount’’ of nuclear waste buried in Perak and that the disposal site was still regarded unsafe.
‘’In Malaysia, we do have nuclear waste which perhaps the public is not aware of. We had to bury the amang, a by-product from tin mining.
‘’It is not radioactive but it is not good to handle. We had to bury it in Perak, deep in the ground. But the place is still not safe, and we have almost one square mile that is dangerous,” he said, adding that he did not know where the site was.
Following his remarks, The Star has discovered that 80,000 200-litre drums containing radioactive waste are currently being kept at the dump located in the Kledang Range behind Papan town. The site is about 3km from Bukit Merah and Papan and about 15km from Ipoh. And the waste is thorium hydroxide, not amang.
In fact, it is only January this year that work finally began on the building of a proper underground storage facility called an engineered cell (EC).
For the residents of Bukit Merah and Papan, Dr Mahathir’s acknowledgement of the danger comes as a bitter vindication of their long-drawn battle to stop Asian Rare Earth Sdn Bhd (ARE), a company located at the Bukit Merah Industrial Area in the 1980s, from disposing of its radioactive waste near their towns.
And if the rest of the country has forgotten what they went through 27 years ago, the people of Bukit Merah, Papan and other settlements have not.
Perak Anti-Radioactive Committee chairman Hew Yoon Tat took Dr Mahathir to task for seemingly making light of the matter.
“The waste was never buried and the amount is not small. I would also like to remind Dr Mahathir that the radioactive waste came from a company approved by the Government to process rare earth,” he said.
Hew, 66, a butcher from Bukit Merah, added that the ARE factory extracted yytrium from monazite, one of the minerals found in amang (tin tailings), which were exported for use in high technology products.
In the production process, thorium hydroxide was produced. Both monazite and the waste contained thorium, which has a half-life of 13.9 billion years.
“Cancer-causing radon gas is released during decay,” he added.
ARE, which started production in 1982, had constructed the facility in the Kledang Range after former Deputy Prime Minister Tun Musa Hitam declared a proposed dumpsite on a durian hill near settlements in Papan unsafe and ordered the company to look for an alternative site.
Countering Dr Mahathir’s statement that “perhaps the public is not aware” of the waste, Hew said: “People involved in the series of protests, court case, and those whose lives were affected by ARE will never forget.
“These are the people who had suffered illnesses, braved clashes with the police during demonstrations, were arrested under the Internal Security Act, spent time away from work to show support during protests in Papan, Bukit Merah, Kuala Lumpur, and even in Tokyo.”
Hew was arrested under the Internal Security Act during Operation Lalang in 1987.
Papan-Pusing-Siputeh Anti-Radioacative Waste Dump committee chairman Low Tong Hooi, 69, is also astounded by Dr Mahathir’s statements.
“Why is it only now that he has admitted the radioactive dump is dangerous? In 1984, he maintained that the poorly constructed trenches for the waste in Papan in 1984 were safe,” he said.
Low added that experts from America, Britain, Canada and Japan brought in with the help of Sahabat Alam Malaysia, Consumer Association of Penang and the Environmental Protection Society of Malaysia declared the factory and the dump unsafe but the Government preferred to heed another view.
Although the ARE factory ceased operations in 1994, the company still maintains an office in a Menglembu housing estate.
The Star has learnt that it was only nine years later, between 2003 and 2005, that a decommissioning and decontamination exercise was carried out at the factory.
ARE’s general manager (administration) Kazuhiko Nishikawa said that about 250,000 tonnes of contaminated equipment, concrete structure, soil and materials were removed and transported by specially designed lorries approved by the Atomic Energy Licensing Board to an engineered cell called EC1 constructed at the 41ha site in the Kledang Range at the back of Papan.
“AELB has confirmed that the former factory site has been fully cleaned and is free from radioactive contamination. The lot was returned to the state government last year,” he said in an interview.
Kazuhiko said the company was now carrying out a project to construct another engineered cell (EC2) next to EC1 to store the thorium hydroxide accumulated during ARE’s operations between May 1982 and July 1984. The EC2 will decommission the use of the present storage facility and dispose of everything underground to a depth of 10m, similar to EC1.
Details of the project took three years to be worked out and had been reviewed by local and international experts and approved by AELB, he said.
“The project was designed in accordance with international and Malaysian standards and regulations set by agencies such as the International Commission on Radiological Protection, the International Atomic Energy Agency, AELB and the Department of Occupational Safety and Health.
“It is also being monitored by the Perak Government and its consultant is the Malaysian Nuclear Agency,” he said.
Kazuhiko said 500,000 tonnes of contaminated materials comprising debris from the concrete facility which would be demolished, 80,000 drums of wastes, and soil would be sent to EC2.
ARE has tasked US-based environmental and geotechnical engineering design and construction services specialist GeoSyntec Consultants Inc and its Malaysian subsidiary, GSM Consultancy (M) Sdn Bhd, with the management and implementation of the project.
Work of the project commenced in January. AELB would supervise and inspect all works during construction and the Perak government, relevant state agencies, and the PARC would be briefed on its progress, said Kazuhiko.
GSM Consultancy (M) Sdn Bhd director Anthony Goh said EC1 had been properly designed and constructed, based on its monitoring over the past six years.
Goh said frequent monitoring at the site had been carried out since 1992 and the results reported to the AELB.
“We did not find any increase in the background level of radiation and radon gas. Tests on ground and surface water and vegetation in the area did not suggest any contamination,” said Goh.
He added that all those involved in EC2, scheduled for completion in 2013, would be given a dosimeter badge to check on contamination and would undergo medical check-ups every month.
“Mechanised handling of the drums and waste will be introduced when transferring into EC2. We will solidify and repack the waste if the drums are corroded,” he said.
He also said the operation did not pose any public risk as there was no one living within 2km from the site.
“The dump will have a 200m buffer zone from its fence where no human activities would be allowed,” he added.
Both the engineered cells would then be “capped” with a final single cover to ensure safe disposal and minimal impact to the environment, he added.
AELB will monitor the site for two years before it is handed to the state government for long-term management and maintenance to ensure security.
Kazuhiko added that ARE was bearing the cost for the project but declined to reveal the amount.
PARC’s Hew said no one could ensure that the dump would not pose any danger in the long run. He hoped that future state governments would not forget about the dump and would continue to monitor it for the sake of the people.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Sand Thieves damaging environment
This will be another "talking-kok" publicity stunt.
"410 tip-offs" and only 43 nabbed?
"This illegal activity has been going on for years..." and what have they done to nab the problem?
Most of these illegal sand minings are from Barisan Najis states....and that could be the reason why it will merely be a once in a full-moon-stunt. When political masters intervene, all these stunts will end. Gua tak caya lagi....
Friday April 30, 2010
Hunt for culprits who have made billions and damaged environment
By LOURDES CHARLES
thestar
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is on a nationwide hunt for sand thieves who have not only raked in billions of ringgit but also caused massive damage to the environment.
It is learnt that MACC officers who went undercover have so far nabbed 43 suspects and several more are on their radar.
MACC director of investigations Mustafar Ali said a special task force had unearthed the activities of several syndicates that had been “exporting” sand under the guise of silica to a neighbouring country.
“Exporting sand is illegal but not silica which is a component in sand used to make glass.
“Nineteen people have been charged so far and more will be taken to court once we obtain the Deputy Public Prosecutor’s consent,” he told The Star.
Mustafar said the MACC had received 410 tip-offs and reports on illegal sand mining and it was working closely with other relevant agencies.
He said in one state alone, it was estimated that 3,000 lorries were transporting sand illegally, involving a face value of about RM1.6mil daily.
In a month, the sand thieves would have amassed at least RM48.9mil, and RM587mil a year. This amount does not include sand smuggled in barges.
“This illegal activity has been going on for years and they are damaging the environment, flora and fauna as well as causing erosion,’’ Mustafar added.
Mustafar said MACC investigations revealed that bribes paid out to those in authority ranged between RM500 and RM88,000, with sexual favours also thrown in.
He said those caught before the MACC Act 2009 was enforced in 2009 could be jailed a minimum of 14 days and up to 20 years, and fined RM10,000 or five times the gratification amount, whichever is higher, or both.
Under the MACC Act, a person convicted of the offence could be jailed up to 20 years or fined five times the amount of gratification or both.
Mustafar appealed to the public who knew of such illegal activities to contact the authorities.
"410 tip-offs" and only 43 nabbed?
"This illegal activity has been going on for years..." and what have they done to nab the problem?
Most of these illegal sand minings are from Barisan Najis states....and that could be the reason why it will merely be a once in a full-moon-stunt. When political masters intervene, all these stunts will end. Gua tak caya lagi....
Friday April 30, 2010
Hunt for culprits who have made billions and damaged environment
By LOURDES CHARLES
thestar
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) is on a nationwide hunt for sand thieves who have not only raked in billions of ringgit but also caused massive damage to the environment.
It is learnt that MACC officers who went undercover have so far nabbed 43 suspects and several more are on their radar.
MACC director of investigations Mustafar Ali said a special task force had unearthed the activities of several syndicates that had been “exporting” sand under the guise of silica to a neighbouring country.
“Exporting sand is illegal but not silica which is a component in sand used to make glass.
“Nineteen people have been charged so far and more will be taken to court once we obtain the Deputy Public Prosecutor’s consent,” he told The Star.
Mustafar said the MACC had received 410 tip-offs and reports on illegal sand mining and it was working closely with other relevant agencies.
He said in one state alone, it was estimated that 3,000 lorries were transporting sand illegally, involving a face value of about RM1.6mil daily.
In a month, the sand thieves would have amassed at least RM48.9mil, and RM587mil a year. This amount does not include sand smuggled in barges.
“This illegal activity has been going on for years and they are damaging the environment, flora and fauna as well as causing erosion,’’ Mustafar added.
Mustafar said MACC investigations revealed that bribes paid out to those in authority ranged between RM500 and RM88,000, with sexual favours also thrown in.
He said those caught before the MACC Act 2009 was enforced in 2009 could be jailed a minimum of 14 days and up to 20 years, and fined RM10,000 or five times the gratification amount, whichever is higher, or both.
Under the MACC Act, a person convicted of the offence could be jailed up to 20 years or fined five times the amount of gratification or both.
Mustafar appealed to the public who knew of such illegal activities to contact the authorities.
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
Sabahans - your doomsday is pending
And, Please CONTINUE voting for Barisan Najis, Ok?
------
Trepidation as Sabah dirty coal-fired power plant D-day looms
Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:35
www.freemalaysiatoday.com
KOTA KINABALU: Amidst the scorching Sabah heat, dry rivers and raging wildfires, advocates of a greener, cleaner state face up to the burning likelihood that the government's final solution to the state's perennial electricity shortage could be the kiss of death to their efforts to preserve the environment.
The environment impact assessment (EIA) report of the proposed 300MW coal-fired power plant at Felda Tungku in Lahad Datu, is due to be out this month.
The state government, after initially dithering on approving the controversial plant, has finally succumbed to pressure from federal authorities responsible for the country's energy demands.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman rejected the coal power plant in 2008, but rapidly back-pedalled when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced that the controversial plant would be sited at Felda Tungku.
Electricity supply in the state comes directly under the federal government through power supplier Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB), which in turn is controlled by the country's main power supplier, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB).
SESB and TNB have long maintained that coal is the only option as a source of power supply on the east coast.
"Coal is the most economically viable fuel option for the east coast of Sabah, against other alternatives. Abundance supply of coal from nearby Kalimantan… will provide secured supply of coal at competitive price, thus ensuring continuous operation of the plant and optimum cost of supply/tariff," SESB said on its website.
But, the people residing there are unconvinced. They remain opposed because of fears that toxic coal pollutants will affect both their health and the environment.
The fishing communities along the pristine Darvel Bay, where the coal-fired plant will discharge millions of gallons of treated heated water, are fearful for their now abundant catch.
“The people of Lahad Datu and Seguntor had rejected the coal-fired plant and now the majority of Sabahans do not want it as well,” said Melanie Chia Ket Sui, an opposition politician, during a futile bid for an emergency motion to enable the State Legislative Assembly to debate the issue.
Unsubstantiated claims
The state government said Chia's claims were unsubstantiated.
Tungku assemblyman Suhaili Said (BN) has said that as far as he knew, his constituents had no issues with the plant being located in their area.
Credence to Chia's assertion, however, is supported by the fact that the proposed power plant has been relocated twice, from Silam in Lahad Datu initially and then from Seguntor in Sandakan before being fixed at Tungku after protests by residents.
Most are aware that coal burning is one of the main causes of acid rain, which damages buildings and can be detrimental to aquatic and plant life.
Environmental groups fighting for transparency on the issue are still smarting from anger after their proposals for alternate “clean” energy sources were repeatedly slapped down by the government.
They have already written off the pending report as a whitewash.
"They (the government) have already indicated that it will go ahead no matter what we say," the president of the Sabah Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa), Wong Tack, said recently.
"They have no respect for the wishes of Sabahans. They will build the plant and it will be a disaster for the east coast.
"The government promised a second review of the terms and conditions of the EIA, but where is it? It is still the same.
"Last month, the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) people met (TNB) chairman (Tan Sri) Leo Moggie and he admitted to them that it (the proposed plant) will destroy the environment, but they would nevertheless go ahead," he said in a recent interview.
"He (Moggie) admitted that the proposed site is in an eco-sensitive area that could possibly affect the environment stretching from Darvel Bay to the pristine Danum Valley.
"They simply do not want to look at any other energy sources. They want coal and they will get it," said Wong.
He warned that Sepa and other environmental groups would not be standing by idly.
"Darvel Bay is a fixed deposit for Sabahans… for our children. We are not going to allow anyone to jeopardise the life of our future generations…"
Many unanswered questions
The anti-coal lobby has few prospects of success other than to threaten to help evict the government at the next election if it goes ahead with the plan.
"We have misgivings. What Sabahans must ask is, why? Why not use the plentiful natural gas we are blessed with or buy from Sarawak? They are willing to sell to us the surplus they have from Bakun. Brunei has grabbed their offer. Why not us?
"It is clean and cheaper in the long term. It also will not damage our environment. All we would have to do is extend the transmission lines to Lawas and the Sarawak grid, said Tawau's Sri Tanjung assemblyman Jimmy Wong.
"Why are they (the government) making excuses and pushing for the coal plant which will take years to build?
"They should consider this for the sake of keeping Sabah green, instead of rushing for coal.
"Every year, the government is getting about RM300 million of the RM1 billion from sales tax of palm oil from the east coast. About 30% comes from the Tawau area. You could say more than RM1 billion has been given by Tawau oil palm planters over the years.
"Yet while we have given the most we are suffering the most… and now they are forcing us to breathe polluted air when they put up this coal plant," he added.
A majority of Tawau's 500,000 population (excluding thousands of illegal immigrants) are against the plant, but are resigned to it after enduring decades of frequent power cuts akin to a third world nation.
Moggie argued that the proposed plant is a prudent choice and a way to diversify electricity generation sources.
"Hydropower is a potential (energy source). But if you develop hydropower, it also raises questions about the environment and inundation of areas. Coal supply compared to oil is more dependable, so in future coal will play an important part in our power generation diversification," Moggie said in an interview in 2006.
He said neither gas nor hydropower is available on the east coast of Sabah and biomass is a marginal way of obtaining power supply.
Therefore, he said, "coal is the most practical fuel source and that’s why we decided on it... it is not just us who is using coal but the world also is using it”.
SESB looked at a number of potential sites and identified a portion of state-owned Yayasan Sabah land where the abandoned Pacific Hardwood complex stood sandwiched by Darvel Bay and Silam Hill as the most logical (choice) in terms of its centralised position for a power plant.
The worry is that the state, while still considered one of the most environmentally friendly places in the world, is leaning towards unfriendly environmental policies that will lead to irreversible long-term damage to its unique eco-system.
For the state's environmentalists, doomsday is pending.
- FMT Staff
------
Trepidation as Sabah dirty coal-fired power plant D-day looms
Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:35
www.freemalaysiatoday.com
KOTA KINABALU: Amidst the scorching Sabah heat, dry rivers and raging wildfires, advocates of a greener, cleaner state face up to the burning likelihood that the government's final solution to the state's perennial electricity shortage could be the kiss of death to their efforts to preserve the environment.
The environment impact assessment (EIA) report of the proposed 300MW coal-fired power plant at Felda Tungku in Lahad Datu, is due to be out this month.
The state government, after initially dithering on approving the controversial plant, has finally succumbed to pressure from federal authorities responsible for the country's energy demands.
Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman rejected the coal power plant in 2008, but rapidly back-pedalled when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced that the controversial plant would be sited at Felda Tungku.
Electricity supply in the state comes directly under the federal government through power supplier Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB), which in turn is controlled by the country's main power supplier, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB).
SESB and TNB have long maintained that coal is the only option as a source of power supply on the east coast.
"Coal is the most economically viable fuel option for the east coast of Sabah, against other alternatives. Abundance supply of coal from nearby Kalimantan… will provide secured supply of coal at competitive price, thus ensuring continuous operation of the plant and optimum cost of supply/tariff," SESB said on its website.
But, the people residing there are unconvinced. They remain opposed because of fears that toxic coal pollutants will affect both their health and the environment.
The fishing communities along the pristine Darvel Bay, where the coal-fired plant will discharge millions of gallons of treated heated water, are fearful for their now abundant catch.
“The people of Lahad Datu and Seguntor had rejected the coal-fired plant and now the majority of Sabahans do not want it as well,” said Melanie Chia Ket Sui, an opposition politician, during a futile bid for an emergency motion to enable the State Legislative Assembly to debate the issue.
Unsubstantiated claims
The state government said Chia's claims were unsubstantiated.
Tungku assemblyman Suhaili Said (BN) has said that as far as he knew, his constituents had no issues with the plant being located in their area.
Credence to Chia's assertion, however, is supported by the fact that the proposed power plant has been relocated twice, from Silam in Lahad Datu initially and then from Seguntor in Sandakan before being fixed at Tungku after protests by residents.
Most are aware that coal burning is one of the main causes of acid rain, which damages buildings and can be detrimental to aquatic and plant life.
Environmental groups fighting for transparency on the issue are still smarting from anger after their proposals for alternate “clean” energy sources were repeatedly slapped down by the government.
They have already written off the pending report as a whitewash.
"They (the government) have already indicated that it will go ahead no matter what we say," the president of the Sabah Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa), Wong Tack, said recently.
"They have no respect for the wishes of Sabahans. They will build the plant and it will be a disaster for the east coast.
"The government promised a second review of the terms and conditions of the EIA, but where is it? It is still the same.
"Last month, the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) people met (TNB) chairman (Tan Sri) Leo Moggie and he admitted to them that it (the proposed plant) will destroy the environment, but they would nevertheless go ahead," he said in a recent interview.
"He (Moggie) admitted that the proposed site is in an eco-sensitive area that could possibly affect the environment stretching from Darvel Bay to the pristine Danum Valley.
"They simply do not want to look at any other energy sources. They want coal and they will get it," said Wong.
He warned that Sepa and other environmental groups would not be standing by idly.
"Darvel Bay is a fixed deposit for Sabahans… for our children. We are not going to allow anyone to jeopardise the life of our future generations…"
Many unanswered questions
The anti-coal lobby has few prospects of success other than to threaten to help evict the government at the next election if it goes ahead with the plan.
"We have misgivings. What Sabahans must ask is, why? Why not use the plentiful natural gas we are blessed with or buy from Sarawak? They are willing to sell to us the surplus they have from Bakun. Brunei has grabbed their offer. Why not us?
"It is clean and cheaper in the long term. It also will not damage our environment. All we would have to do is extend the transmission lines to Lawas and the Sarawak grid, said Tawau's Sri Tanjung assemblyman Jimmy Wong.
"Why are they (the government) making excuses and pushing for the coal plant which will take years to build?
"They should consider this for the sake of keeping Sabah green, instead of rushing for coal.
"Every year, the government is getting about RM300 million of the RM1 billion from sales tax of palm oil from the east coast. About 30% comes from the Tawau area. You could say more than RM1 billion has been given by Tawau oil palm planters over the years.
"Yet while we have given the most we are suffering the most… and now they are forcing us to breathe polluted air when they put up this coal plant," he added.
A majority of Tawau's 500,000 population (excluding thousands of illegal immigrants) are against the plant, but are resigned to it after enduring decades of frequent power cuts akin to a third world nation.
Moggie argued that the proposed plant is a prudent choice and a way to diversify electricity generation sources.
"Hydropower is a potential (energy source). But if you develop hydropower, it also raises questions about the environment and inundation of areas. Coal supply compared to oil is more dependable, so in future coal will play an important part in our power generation diversification," Moggie said in an interview in 2006.
He said neither gas nor hydropower is available on the east coast of Sabah and biomass is a marginal way of obtaining power supply.
Therefore, he said, "coal is the most practical fuel source and that’s why we decided on it... it is not just us who is using coal but the world also is using it”.
SESB looked at a number of potential sites and identified a portion of state-owned Yayasan Sabah land where the abandoned Pacific Hardwood complex stood sandwiched by Darvel Bay and Silam Hill as the most logical (choice) in terms of its centralised position for a power plant.
The worry is that the state, while still considered one of the most environmentally friendly places in the world, is leaning towards unfriendly environmental policies that will lead to irreversible long-term damage to its unique eco-system.
For the state's environmentalists, doomsday is pending.
- FMT Staff
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Ozone Hole Healing Could Cause Further Climate Warming
ScienceDaily (Jan. 26, 2010) — The hole in the ozone layer is now steadily closing, but its repair could actually increase warming in the southern hemisphere, according to scientists at the University of Leeds.
The Antarctic ozone hole was once regarded as one of the biggest environmental threats, but the discovery of a previously undiscovered feedback shows that it has instead helped to shield this region from carbon-induced warming over the past two decades.
High-speed winds in the area beneath the hole have led to the formation of brighter summertime clouds, which reflect more of the sun's powerful rays.
"These clouds have acted like a mirror to the sun's rays, reflecting the sun's heat away from the surface to the extent that warming from rising carbon emissions has effectively been cancelled out in this region during the summertime," said Professor Ken Carslaw of the University of Leeds who co-authored the research.
"If, as seems likely, these winds die down, rising CO2 emissions could then cause the warming of the southern hemisphere to accelerate, which would have an impact on future climate predictions," he added.
The key to this newly-discovered feedback is aerosol -- tiny reflective particles suspended within the air that are known by experts to have a huge impact on climate.
Greenhouses gases absorb infrared radiation from the Earth and release it back into the atmosphere as heat, causing the planet to warm up over time. Aerosol works against this by reflecting heat from the sun back into space, cooling the planet as it does so.
Beneath the Antarctic ozone hole, high-speed winds whip up large amounts of sea spray, which contains millions of tiny salt particles. This spray then forms droplets and eventually clouds, and the increased spray over the last two decades has made these clouds brighter and more reflective.
As the ozone layer recovers it is believed that this feedback mechanism could decline in effectiveness, or even be reversed, leading to accelerated warming in the southern hemisphere.
"Our research highlights the value of today's state-of- the-art models and long-term datasets that enable such unexpected and complex climate feedbacks to be detected and accounted for in our future predictions," added Professor Carslaw.
The Leeds team made their prediction using a state-of-the-art global model of aerosols and two decades of meteorological data. The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council's Surface Ocean-Lower Atmosphere Study (UK SOLAS) and the Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence Programme.
Source: sciencedaily.com
The Antarctic ozone hole was once regarded as one of the biggest environmental threats, but the discovery of a previously undiscovered feedback shows that it has instead helped to shield this region from carbon-induced warming over the past two decades.
High-speed winds in the area beneath the hole have led to the formation of brighter summertime clouds, which reflect more of the sun's powerful rays.
"These clouds have acted like a mirror to the sun's rays, reflecting the sun's heat away from the surface to the extent that warming from rising carbon emissions has effectively been cancelled out in this region during the summertime," said Professor Ken Carslaw of the University of Leeds who co-authored the research.
"If, as seems likely, these winds die down, rising CO2 emissions could then cause the warming of the southern hemisphere to accelerate, which would have an impact on future climate predictions," he added.
The key to this newly-discovered feedback is aerosol -- tiny reflective particles suspended within the air that are known by experts to have a huge impact on climate.
Greenhouses gases absorb infrared radiation from the Earth and release it back into the atmosphere as heat, causing the planet to warm up over time. Aerosol works against this by reflecting heat from the sun back into space, cooling the planet as it does so.
Beneath the Antarctic ozone hole, high-speed winds whip up large amounts of sea spray, which contains millions of tiny salt particles. This spray then forms droplets and eventually clouds, and the increased spray over the last two decades has made these clouds brighter and more reflective.
As the ozone layer recovers it is believed that this feedback mechanism could decline in effectiveness, or even be reversed, leading to accelerated warming in the southern hemisphere.
"Our research highlights the value of today's state-of- the-art models and long-term datasets that enable such unexpected and complex climate feedbacks to be detected and accounted for in our future predictions," added Professor Carslaw.
The Leeds team made their prediction using a state-of-the-art global model of aerosols and two decades of meteorological data. The research was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council's Surface Ocean-Lower Atmosphere Study (UK SOLAS) and the Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence Programme.
Source: sciencedaily.com
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Environmentally Friendly
Chinese has been synonym with all the rites, wastages and pollution. Here, we can see what we called "sustainable dead". Lets died sustainably. Be simple and for a friendly environment. Can you?
Admin
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Star
24 Dec 09
Sin Chew Daily reported an “environmentally friendly” wake held for local Chinese writer Yim Yoo Loon.
There was no burning of incense papers, joss sticks and loud chanting. Yim, a retired teacher, preached simplicity throughout his life. The wake was a reflection of his preaching – do not waste and do not pollute.
There was also no paper utensils used during the wake.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and Bukit Bendera MP Liew Chin Tong, who were there to pay their last respects, only bowed their heads in front of Yim’s portrait instead of using joss sticks.
Eldest daughter Yim Why Meng said the family tried their best to adhere to his request for simplicity but many people still sent wreaths to the house.
24 Dec 09
Sin Chew Daily reported an “environmentally friendly” wake held for local Chinese writer Yim Yoo Loon.
There was no burning of incense papers, joss sticks and loud chanting. Yim, a retired teacher, preached simplicity throughout his life. The wake was a reflection of his preaching – do not waste and do not pollute.
There was also no paper utensils used during the wake.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and Bukit Bendera MP Liew Chin Tong, who were there to pay their last respects, only bowed their heads in front of Yim’s portrait instead of using joss sticks.
Eldest daughter Yim Why Meng said the family tried their best to adhere to his request for simplicity but many people still sent wreaths to the house.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Phee Boon Poh - My Environmental Hero
Phee Boon Poh is my hero for environment change. He dares to be different. Without fear of any blacklash from the voters. I have attended his meeting and found that he has been consistent in his policy on good environmental ethics. At last we have one politician who can speak the language of green living without fear or favour. Environmentalists should crusade with this rare gem from PENANG.
Thank you YB Phee Boon Poh.
ForestExplorers
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Sept 30, 2009
Phee: Penang may fine hawkers using polystyrene
By WINNIE YEOH
Star
GEORGE TOWN: A proposed “polluters must pay” policy in Penang suggests imposing higher licensing fees on hawkers using polystyrene materials.
The policy was considered as polystyrene bowls, plates, cups and containers were found to be major sources of mosquito-breeding grounds, said State Health, Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh.
Those caught polystyrene littering will also be slapped with heavier fines under this policy.
“We found 2,807 mosquito-breeding grounds in 130,000 places from Jan 1 to June 6.
“The biggest culprits were plastic bags and the polystyrene items, much of which were found on road sides, near dustbins and fields,” he said when contacted yesterday.
Phee said there were 814 confirmed dengue cases from Jan 1 to Sept 26 this year – a 72.46% increase compared to the 472 cases recorded during the same period last year.
He said hawkers and the public should opt for other alternatives such as reusable containers or bringing their own tiffin carriers for take-aways. “This may sound harsh but we care for the people.
“The alternative may be more expensive but the consumer has to decide which is cheaper: tiffin carriers and reusable containers, or going to the doctor?
“If one gets dengue, there’s always the possibility of death,” Phee warned.
He expected the “polluters must pay” policy to be discussed at the Seberang Prai Municipal Council full council meeting today.
He had also suggested to councillors from the Penang Municipal Council to bring up the matter at their next full council meeting.
Sept 30, 2009
Phee: Penang may fine hawkers using polystyrene
By WINNIE YEOH
Star
GEORGE TOWN: A proposed “polluters must pay” policy in Penang suggests imposing higher licensing fees on hawkers using polystyrene materials.
The policy was considered as polystyrene bowls, plates, cups and containers were found to be major sources of mosquito-breeding grounds, said State Health, Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh.
Those caught polystyrene littering will also be slapped with heavier fines under this policy.
“We found 2,807 mosquito-breeding grounds in 130,000 places from Jan 1 to June 6.
“The biggest culprits were plastic bags and the polystyrene items, much of which were found on road sides, near dustbins and fields,” he said when contacted yesterday.
Phee said there were 814 confirmed dengue cases from Jan 1 to Sept 26 this year – a 72.46% increase compared to the 472 cases recorded during the same period last year.
He said hawkers and the public should opt for other alternatives such as reusable containers or bringing their own tiffin carriers for take-aways. “This may sound harsh but we care for the people.
“The alternative may be more expensive but the consumer has to decide which is cheaper: tiffin carriers and reusable containers, or going to the doctor?
“If one gets dengue, there’s always the possibility of death,” Phee warned.
He expected the “polluters must pay” policy to be discussed at the Seberang Prai Municipal Council full council meeting today.
He had also suggested to councillors from the Penang Municipal Council to bring up the matter at their next full council meeting.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Need for more environmental activitism
July 28, 2009
Need for more environmental activitism
By RUBEN SARIO
Star
KOTA KINABALU: More environmental activism is needed in Malaysia to ensure elected leaders are more conscious of environmental concerns.
Malaysian Nature Society president Tan Sri Dr Salleh Mohd Nor said elected leaders needed to made more concerned about the environment and promote such issues in Parliament.
“We have a senator who speaks for the diabled but there is no one representing the environment,” he said in response to a question following a lecture on environmental issues at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) here Tuesday.
Dr Salleh said environmental activitism could come in various forms including the setting up of a “green party,” which he said he was not promoting.
“But what I’m promoting is the need for all our wakil rakyat (elected representatives) to be more environmentally concerned,” he added.
Dr Salleh said among the pressing environmental issues in the country was the loss of its biodiversity partly due to the clearing of forests and wetlands for plantations.
He said in his term as director-general of the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia from 1977-95, a species of tree became extinct as a result of wetlands being cleared for oil palm plantations.
“We have denied our future generations the opportunity to explore the potential of that particular tree,” Dr Salleh said, adding that it was saddening that this was happening in a country considered to be one of the world biodiversity hotspots.
He said the state of Sabah in the Borneo island had been subjected to “excessive logging” for many years, leaving only “pockets of pristine rainforests” in conservation areas such as the Danum Valley and the Maliau Basin.
Noting that large tracts of forested areas had been converted to tree plantations, Dr Salleh said there was still insufficient research on the impact of such large scale conversions on the environment.
Need for more environmental activitism
By RUBEN SARIO
Star
KOTA KINABALU: More environmental activism is needed in Malaysia to ensure elected leaders are more conscious of environmental concerns.
Malaysian Nature Society president Tan Sri Dr Salleh Mohd Nor said elected leaders needed to made more concerned about the environment and promote such issues in Parliament.
“We have a senator who speaks for the diabled but there is no one representing the environment,” he said in response to a question following a lecture on environmental issues at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) here Tuesday.
Dr Salleh said environmental activitism could come in various forms including the setting up of a “green party,” which he said he was not promoting.
“But what I’m promoting is the need for all our wakil rakyat (elected representatives) to be more environmentally concerned,” he added.
Dr Salleh said among the pressing environmental issues in the country was the loss of its biodiversity partly due to the clearing of forests and wetlands for plantations.
He said in his term as director-general of the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia from 1977-95, a species of tree became extinct as a result of wetlands being cleared for oil palm plantations.
“We have denied our future generations the opportunity to explore the potential of that particular tree,” Dr Salleh said, adding that it was saddening that this was happening in a country considered to be one of the world biodiversity hotspots.
He said the state of Sabah in the Borneo island had been subjected to “excessive logging” for many years, leaving only “pockets of pristine rainforests” in conservation areas such as the Danum Valley and the Maliau Basin.
Noting that large tracts of forested areas had been converted to tree plantations, Dr Salleh said there was still insufficient research on the impact of such large scale conversions on the environment.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Dances with Dayaks
Azly Rahman Nov 24, 08
Malaysiakini
"We did not ask you white men to come here. The Great Spirit gave us this country as a home. You had yours. We did not interfere with you. The Great Spirit gave us plenty of land to live on, and buffalo, deer, antelope and other game. But you have come here, you are taking my land from me, you are killing off our game, so it is hard for us to live. Now, you tell us to work for a living, but the Great Spirit did not make us to work, but to live by hunting. You white men can work if you want to. We do not interfere with you, and again you say why do you not become civilized? We do not want your civilization! We would live as our fathers did, and their fathers before them." - Crazy Horse of the Sioux tribe
I was just thinking that of all the trails in this life there is one that matters most. It is the trail of a true human being - Kickin Bird, (quote from the movie Dances With Wolves)
The recent happenings in Sarawak interest me; something West Malaysians must learn from. A new era is dawning – of culture and consciousness in the face of state-sponsored corporate crony capitalism. The Sarawakians are dancing to reclaim ownership of their sacred land.
Eco-feminism and ecosophical thinking of Rachel Carson, Anais Nin, and even of the "Lakei Penan" or "Penan Man" Bruno Manser is resurfacing amongst the indigenous peoples of Sarawak and hopefully Sabah too. For too long, Mother Earth has been subjugated by those who do not understand what "development" means. For too long the Sarawakians and the Sabahans have been colonised by emperors in newer clothes who go into the land of the Orang Asal and install individuals, ideologies, and institutions alien to the natives and call it "progress". In the classic play "Kisah Perjuangan Suku Naga" (The Struggle of the Naga Tribe". The Javanese poet WS Rendra called these outsiders "ogres" from Tanah Seberang.
This brings us to the bigger and global question: are we environmentally doomed? Are we at the eleventh hour of total environmental destruction? How devastating has the impact of carbon dioxide emissions been? How serious is the depletion of the ozone layer? How much of the rainforests of the world have been destroyed? How fast are the polar ice caps melting, speeding up the looming disaster of Armageddon/ Qiamat of humankind? How many more frequent, major flash floods must we endure?
The Chinese philosopher and mystic Lao Tzu once said, 'Man should not have carved the stone' meaning man should not have invented things for, '... as Man began carving the stone, the process of destruction begins'. Light bulbs, automobiles, power-plants, factories, telephone lines, bombs and computers are inventions that have historically transformed nature. Human beings 'carve the stone' and build structures of power and wealth which transform or even rape Nature in the process.
Ancient philosophies and the teachings of 'revealed religion' (of the Judeo-Christian tradition) warned against the exploitation of the physical environment so that humanity would continue to be close to Nature and closer to the realisation of the Natural Self. Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and probably the most extreme of all Hindu sects, Jainism, teach human beings to respect living things as part of the great chain of beings.
But Western scientific ideology has taught Man to be free from not only thinking about spirits and spirituality, nature and the natural self, religion and deep reflection, but has also 'enlightened' human beings into mastering Nature and using its resources for the 'progress' of mankind. Progress, measured linearly and scientifically, is then equated with 'civilisation'.
What price progress?
Civilisation carries with it the necessity for technological progress and more inventions. But if Nature is destroyed in the process of creating 'civilisations', what does being 'civilised' mean? Would 'going back to Nature' and 'destroying civilisations' be a better way to conceive the meaning of human progress? Must human beings de-evolve, de-urbanise, de-technologise and de-construct themselves in order to save Humanity from its environmental doom?
Industrialisation is a process of transforming nature to culture by the state's appropriation of natural resources. The resources are transformed into technology and techniques and applications derived from the use of science help fuel inventions. Inventions are products/artifacts of the activities of the human mind, activities that are fueled by the need to master man's destiny and the environment. But these inventions contain 'inert capital’ in them, transforming human labour into technologies.
Technologies are then used to further transform nature into culture. Culture in this sense means the culture that comes into being as a result of human beings' economic activities. Modern governments, such as those installed in Sabah and Sarawak, are the necessary evil – they use the state apparatuses and transform the environment by collaborating with powerful multinational corporations in speeding up the use of natural resources, leaving the land barren and human beings in famine and poverty-stricken. Enlightened citizens must collectively revolt against governments that systematically destroy the environment in the name of 'civilisation' and 'progress'.
Citizens must raise the consciousness on the power of these post-modern multinational corporation in that the power these primarily Western-industrialised corporations have are used to bring destruction to the peoples of this Earth as evident in the refusal of powerful nations to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and other global treaties that are enforced to save planet Earth.
Eco-philosophical thinking
Thinking of the Penans and of the blockades against logging, I think of a world inspired by ecological security as a paradigm of a post-global Depression Obamanomics era.
"Ecosophy" or the paradigm of thinking that synthesizes "ecological security" and "natural philosophy" ought to be explored if we are to honor Mother Earth and tame Father Hell. We need to engage in a form of thinking that takes preservation of the environment as a philosophy of development.
Amongst this is to "reuse" and not "recycle". Recycling takes a lot more energy. We need to explore what paradigm of thinking to "reuse" and what to avoid "recycling".
We should not even "recycle" politicians who are corrupted or has a record of destroying the environment. We should not even reuse them.
To engage in an "ecosophical" thinking means to go back to the drawing board of everything and rethink even the way we think. It is going even beyond metacognition; beyond even understanding the way we think about how we think about the world around us.
This might be a mentally paralysing notion even for the thinkers in our government ministries but it is worth exploring. "Ecosophy" takes into consideration not only the environment but the radical ideas about the self itself.
I believe the Orang Asli of Malaysia - the "un-modernized" Temuans, Senoi, Semang, Jakun, Sakai, etc. - can explain this idea of human development better than any expert in any international development bank or in the Ministry of the Environment. I believe too that the Orang Asal of Sabah and Sarawak, the different tribes of the Dayaks, can teach the modern "civilized" man how not to plunder and rape ancestral lands. I believe these natives can teach us in Putrajaya what "ecosophical" thinking means.
"Ecosopohy", independence, and freedom are not a slogans but an existential state of mind and a condition of 'lived democracy', one in which citizens are aware of how oppressive systems that destroys the environment are cultivated. From ecosophy we might learn how to "revilligize" and relearn what "kampong-ism" means, a form of economic thinking that values pastoralism.
Philosophy of "kampong-ism"
We must embrace pastoralism or what we may call "kampongism". For too long the word "kampong" has taken a wrong semiotic turn to connote "backwardness". For too long the word "progress" has been equated with development projects coming from the top and dictated by people who make decisions in four or five star hotels far away from the lives of the natives.
For too long "development" and "national progress" has become meaningless mantra shoved into the minds of the natives, be they of the Orang Asal or the Orang Asli. What interests these "ogres from tanah seberang" is logging and plundering at the expense of the lives of the natives. The history of the Penan for example is a classic example of an ongoing saga of the displacement of the natives under the shibboleth of developmentalism.
Kampong-ism brings the human mind away from complex theories, complex systems, competitive and cutthroat economic philosophies, and combative male-female relationships. Kampong-ism is driven by the philosophy of Eastern existentialism, sound metaphysical construct, harmonious conception of kinship, a good balance of patriarchy and matriarchy, and an economic production system based on the good old farming system that is not "bio- technologically" driven. It is not a philosophy that kow-tows to the dictates of Wall Street, World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.
Kampong-ism is not race-based, ethnicity-based, gender-based, greed-based, sexual-preference- based or ideology-based philosophy of human liberation and organisation. It has the potential of reorganising societies based on the themes Rousseau, Reason, and Revolution in Human Consciousness. More than that it can be inspired by the philosophy of ecological sustainability and closeness to Nature as embodied by the Orang Asli and Orang Asal.
If there is a revolution of spiritual consciousness emerging out of the awakening of the Dayak Spirit, we in the "modern world plagued by the disease of corporate crony capitalism" ought to rejoice. We ought to learn what the new dance of the Dayaks mean. No longer will this dance be one exploited for Malaysia's tourist and hospitality industry to showcase "shallow and meaningless Malaysian multiculturalism", but a new dance for a new era grounded in Mother Earth, inspired by the Great Spirit of Dayak Awakening.
Will this dance with the Dayaks displace despotic regimes and dying demagogues? The answer lies in the way the dancers becoming the dance.
"We did not ask you white men to come here. The Great Spirit gave us this country as a home. You had yours. We did not interfere with you. The Great Spirit gave us plenty of land to live on, and buffalo, deer, antelope and other game. But you have come here, you are taking my land from me, you are killing off our game, so it is hard for us to live. Now, you tell us to work for a living, but the Great Spirit did not make us to work, but to live by hunting. You white men can work if you want to. We do not interfere with you, and again you say why do you not become civilized? We do not want your civilization! We would live as our fathers did, and their fathers before them." - Crazy Horse of the Sioux tribe
I was just thinking that of all the trails in this life there is one that matters most. It is the trail of a true human being - Kickin Bird, (quote from the movie Dances With Wolves)
The recent happenings in Sarawak interest me; something West Malaysians must learn from. A new era is dawning – of culture and consciousness in the face of state-sponsored corporate crony capitalism. The Sarawakians are dancing to reclaim ownership of their sacred land.
Eco-feminism and ecosophical thinking of Rachel Carson, Anais Nin, and even of the "Lakei Penan" or "Penan Man" Bruno Manser is resurfacing amongst the indigenous peoples of Sarawak and hopefully Sabah too. For too long, Mother Earth has been subjugated by those who do not understand what "development" means. For too long the Sarawakians and the Sabahans have been colonised by emperors in newer clothes who go into the land of the Orang Asal and install individuals, ideologies, and institutions alien to the natives and call it "progress". In the classic play "Kisah Perjuangan Suku Naga" (The Struggle of the Naga Tribe". The Javanese poet WS Rendra called these outsiders "ogres" from Tanah Seberang.
This brings us to the bigger and global question: are we environmentally doomed? Are we at the eleventh hour of total environmental destruction? How devastating has the impact of carbon dioxide emissions been? How serious is the depletion of the ozone layer? How much of the rainforests of the world have been destroyed? How fast are the polar ice caps melting, speeding up the looming disaster of Armageddon/ Qiamat of humankind? How many more frequent, major flash floods must we endure?
The Chinese philosopher and mystic Lao Tzu once said, 'Man should not have carved the stone' meaning man should not have invented things for, '... as Man began carving the stone, the process of destruction begins'. Light bulbs, automobiles, power-plants, factories, telephone lines, bombs and computers are inventions that have historically transformed nature. Human beings 'carve the stone' and build structures of power and wealth which transform or even rape Nature in the process.
Ancient philosophies and the teachings of 'revealed religion' (of the Judeo-Christian tradition) warned against the exploitation of the physical environment so that humanity would continue to be close to Nature and closer to the realisation of the Natural Self. Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism, and probably the most extreme of all Hindu sects, Jainism, teach human beings to respect living things as part of the great chain of beings.
But Western scientific ideology has taught Man to be free from not only thinking about spirits and spirituality, nature and the natural self, religion and deep reflection, but has also 'enlightened' human beings into mastering Nature and using its resources for the 'progress' of mankind. Progress, measured linearly and scientifically, is then equated with 'civilisation'.
What price progress?
Civilisation carries with it the necessity for technological progress and more inventions. But if Nature is destroyed in the process of creating 'civilisations', what does being 'civilised' mean? Would 'going back to Nature' and 'destroying civilisations' be a better way to conceive the meaning of human progress? Must human beings de-evolve, de-urbanise, de-technologise and de-construct themselves in order to save Humanity from its environmental doom?
Industrialisation is a process of transforming nature to culture by the state's appropriation of natural resources. The resources are transformed into technology and techniques and applications derived from the use of science help fuel inventions. Inventions are products/artifacts of the activities of the human mind, activities that are fueled by the need to master man's destiny and the environment. But these inventions contain 'inert capital’ in them, transforming human labour into technologies.
Technologies are then used to further transform nature into culture. Culture in this sense means the culture that comes into being as a result of human beings' economic activities. Modern governments, such as those installed in Sabah and Sarawak, are the necessary evil – they use the state apparatuses and transform the environment by collaborating with powerful multinational corporations in speeding up the use of natural resources, leaving the land barren and human beings in famine and poverty-stricken. Enlightened citizens must collectively revolt against governments that systematically destroy the environment in the name of 'civilisation' and 'progress'.
Citizens must raise the consciousness on the power of these post-modern multinational corporation in that the power these primarily Western-industrialised corporations have are used to bring destruction to the peoples of this Earth as evident in the refusal of powerful nations to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and other global treaties that are enforced to save planet Earth.
Eco-philosophical thinking
Thinking of the Penans and of the blockades against logging, I think of a world inspired by ecological security as a paradigm of a post-global Depression Obamanomics era.
"Ecosophy" or the paradigm of thinking that synthesizes "ecological security" and "natural philosophy" ought to be explored if we are to honor Mother Earth and tame Father Hell. We need to engage in a form of thinking that takes preservation of the environment as a philosophy of development.
Amongst this is to "reuse" and not "recycle". Recycling takes a lot more energy. We need to explore what paradigm of thinking to "reuse" and what to avoid "recycling".
We should not even "recycle" politicians who are corrupted or has a record of destroying the environment. We should not even reuse them.
To engage in an "ecosophical" thinking means to go back to the drawing board of everything and rethink even the way we think. It is going even beyond metacognition; beyond even understanding the way we think about how we think about the world around us.
This might be a mentally paralysing notion even for the thinkers in our government ministries but it is worth exploring. "Ecosophy" takes into consideration not only the environment but the radical ideas about the self itself.
I believe the Orang Asli of Malaysia - the "un-modernized" Temuans, Senoi, Semang, Jakun, Sakai, etc. - can explain this idea of human development better than any expert in any international development bank or in the Ministry of the Environment. I believe too that the Orang Asal of Sabah and Sarawak, the different tribes of the Dayaks, can teach the modern "civilized" man how not to plunder and rape ancestral lands. I believe these natives can teach us in Putrajaya what "ecosophical" thinking means.
"Ecosopohy", independence, and freedom are not a slogans but an existential state of mind and a condition of 'lived democracy', one in which citizens are aware of how oppressive systems that destroys the environment are cultivated. From ecosophy we might learn how to "revilligize" and relearn what "kampong-ism" means, a form of economic thinking that values pastoralism.
Philosophy of "kampong-ism"
We must embrace pastoralism or what we may call "kampongism". For too long the word "kampong" has taken a wrong semiotic turn to connote "backwardness". For too long the word "progress" has been equated with development projects coming from the top and dictated by people who make decisions in four or five star hotels far away from the lives of the natives.
For too long "development" and "national progress" has become meaningless mantra shoved into the minds of the natives, be they of the Orang Asal or the Orang Asli. What interests these "ogres from tanah seberang" is logging and plundering at the expense of the lives of the natives. The history of the Penan for example is a classic example of an ongoing saga of the displacement of the natives under the shibboleth of developmentalism.
Kampong-ism brings the human mind away from complex theories, complex systems, competitive and cutthroat economic philosophies, and combative male-female relationships. Kampong-ism is driven by the philosophy of Eastern existentialism, sound metaphysical construct, harmonious conception of kinship, a good balance of patriarchy and matriarchy, and an economic production system based on the good old farming system that is not "bio- technologically" driven. It is not a philosophy that kow-tows to the dictates of Wall Street, World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund.
Kampong-ism is not race-based, ethnicity-based, gender-based, greed-based, sexual-preference- based or ideology-based philosophy of human liberation and organisation. It has the potential of reorganising societies based on the themes Rousseau, Reason, and Revolution in Human Consciousness. More than that it can be inspired by the philosophy of ecological sustainability and closeness to Nature as embodied by the Orang Asli and Orang Asal.
If there is a revolution of spiritual consciousness emerging out of the awakening of the Dayak Spirit, we in the "modern world plagued by the disease of corporate crony capitalism" ought to rejoice. We ought to learn what the new dance of the Dayaks mean. No longer will this dance be one exploited for Malaysia's tourist and hospitality industry to showcase "shallow and meaningless Malaysian multiculturalism", but a new dance for a new era grounded in Mother Earth, inspired by the Great Spirit of Dayak Awakening.
Will this dance with the Dayaks displace despotic regimes and dying demagogues? The answer lies in the way the dancers becoming the dance.
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