Kuantan folk fear ‘going back to Mars’, says MP

Residents in Kuantan are concerned of about “returning to Mars” as fears of bauxite pollution painting their town red increases.

According to Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh, this is due to a lack of transparency in the procedures for clearing Pahang’s bauxite stockpile.

This follows the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) decision on Thursday to revoke the impoundment of 10 million tonnes of the ore, used to produce aluminium.

Fuziah said apart from requiring miners to sign an agreement that includes a pledge not to get involved in bribery and abuse of power, there is no information on how the bauxite stockpiles would be cleared.

“There are other procedures (that need) to be followed, like how much earth you can carry, how you cover it, and the speed of the lorry. We have to question how this is going to be enforced.

“So we Kuantan people are very concerned at the moment whether we are going back to Mars,” she told Malaysiakini yesterday, while conceding there is a need to clear the ten-tonne stockpile.

On Thursday, the MACC said it will be revoking the impoundment that had been in force since Aug 12. The impoundment had been put in place to facilitate an investigation on illegal bauxite mining, and prevents any bauxite in the state from being moved.

MACC deputy chief commissioner (operations) Azam Baki said the decision was made after the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, the Minerals and Geoscience Department and the Pahang state government agreed to introduce new rules to tackle illegal bauxite mining.

He said new guidelines to ensure existing stockpiles are cleared in an orderly fashion had also been put in place, and the move does not allow new mining activities to take place.

Painting town red

The decision came amid a moratorium on bauxite mining that has been in force since Jan 15 last year. This three-month pause was meant to facilitate the clearing of existing stockpiles and implementing of environmental controls to limit pollution caused by the bauxite industry.

At the time, the mining and road transport of bauxite - legal or otherwise - had left affected areas and its surroundings covered in red dust, leading to protests by local activists and comments that the areas now resembled the “red planet” Mars.

The moratorium has since been extended repeatedly. This June 26, Pahang Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob said it would remain in place until after the 14th general election.

According to Fuziah, who chaired the now-defunct Coalition for Action Against Bauxite Pollution, the environment around Kuantan has markedly improved following a clean-up operation that took place when the moratorium first came into effect.

However, the situation worsened again when the government began issuing approved permits (AP) for exporting bauxite from the stockpiles, although the pollution was not as bad as when the mining operations were active.

She said this is why it is important for proper procedures to be followed as bauxite shipments resume following the MACC decision, and the lack of such information makes her sceptical of MACC’s announcement.

Sharing Fuziah’s scepticism is the environmental activist Wong Tack, who also criticised the lack of transparency.

“You can clearly see the whole mining operation is shrouded in mystery. You can’t trust what the ministers say, and you don’t know what new rules are in place […]

“I don’t know what the MACC is up to, but we are worried,” he said.

Mystery of growing stockpile

Both Wong and Fuziah also questioned the quantum of the bauxite stockpile.

In June last year, it was reported the stockpile held 5.4 million tonnes of bauxite.

However by August this year when the MACC moved to seize all the stock in Pahang, the quantum had grown to over ten tonnes, as stated in the commission's press release.

This is despite the moratorium on mining and export activity during the period, the MPs pointed out.- Mkini