Lynas decision not ideal but better than status quo, says Yeo

The Pakatan Harapan cabinet's decision to allow Lynas Malaysia to explore a permanent disposal facility (PDF) is far from ideal, says Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin. 

However, Yeo, who is also Bakri MP, said the cabinet decision was a much better move than maintaining the current status quo. 

“The Cabinet has taken note of various viewpoints on this issue, and some people have varying views. Therefore, this is the decision that has been reached. 

“What I can say is that this decision is not the ideal one for me. Not the ideal, but better than the status quo," Yeo told reporters at the National Science Week at the Pustaka Raja Tun Uda today.

“The Cabinet’s decision will be announced in detail no later than August 15. This is because what was announced by the prime minister is only partial,” she added. 

Yeo said the decision was made by the majority of the Cabinet after she and other ministers presented their views.

The cabinet's decision to drop Yeo's condition of not keeping the plant’s radioactive wastes on Malaysian soil will be a major setback for the anti-Lynas campaign within Harapan.

Although the Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry's executive review committee on the refinery had recommended for a PDF within Malaysian borders, Yeo was adamant that the material is shipped abroad.

According to a statement from Lynas yesterday, the company was still in the process of hunting for a waste disposal site within Pahang, where the plant is based.

Lynas' permit renewal is a political hot potato because it has economic benefits – as well as political benefits as it is the world's only major producer of rare earths outside China - but it is sensitive due to its associated health risks. - Mkini