‘Radioactive’ mega-project ignites concern

A massive rare earth ore processing plant is on the cards, but a toxicologist warns that 'low or otherwise', radioactive waste is carcinogen.

KUALA LUMPUR: Undettered by what transpired in the past, the government is embarking on another project which has sparked off health concerns.

According to a New York Times (NYT) report, the government is pursuing a multi-billion ringgit investment in rare metals, which were key components in many hi-tech products.

Backed by the investment from Australian mining giant, Lynas, a massive processing plant would be constructed in Kuantan, Pahang, to produce metals used in products such as Apple’s iPhone, Toyota’s Prius and Boeing’s smart bombs.

Malaysian Atomic Energy Licensing Board director-general Raja Datuk Abdul Aziz Raja Adnan told NYT that the project was only approved after an inter-agency review and assurance that the imported ore and subsequent waste would have low enough levels of radioactivity to be manageable and safe.

However, toxicologist Dr T Jayabalan painted a bleak picture.

The doctor, who treated leukaemia victims whose illnesses he and others had attributed to the now-defunct Mitsubishi Chemicals plant in Bukit Merah, said that low or otherwise, exposure to such material remains hazardous.

“The word ‘low’ here is just a matter of perception – it’s a carcinogen,” he was quoted as saying.

NYT said while the new project was expected to generate RM5 billion worth of exports or nearly 1% of the Malaysian economy starting late next year “but as Malaysia learned the hard way a few decades ago, refining rare earth ore usually leaves thousands of tonnes of low-level radioactive waste behind.”

According to the newspaper, the Bukit Merah Asian Rare Earth plant was still quietly undergoing a US$100 million clean-up exercise despite having shut down in 1992.

This might be one of the major setbacks to the idea of building a rare earth ore processing plant in Kuantan but NYT said the Malaysian government gave the green light following assurance by Lynas that it could be done safely.

It further reported that Lynas had been give a 12-year tax holiday.

With the cost for the Kuantan plant estimated to be about RM690 million and with some 2,500 labourers being employed, the project could break China’s dominance of the market.

Ninety-five percent of the world’s rare earth ore comes from China and the plant in Pahang, the homestate of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, would be the first rare earth ore processing plant outside of the communist nation in three decades.

NYT said that Beijing’s “chokehold” over global rare metal production had in many instances been used as a “trade weapon”.

China’s two-month embargo on trade with Japan over a territorial dispute and recent moves to limit exports had propelled world prices of the material to record highs, sending industrial countries scrambling for alternatives, added the report.

Industries appear gung-ho about Lynas’ investment in Malaysia as it is expected to meet nearly a third of the world’s demand. - FMT