Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari has confirmed that the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) was responsible for land clearing reported to have taken place inside the Selangor State Park.
According to a report by the Malay Mail, he said that the Chinese construction company had obtained the permit to clear land earmarked for a 2.3km road to be built for “entry facilities” but had begun construction “without approval.”
“There was a road permit issued (Permit number: BU-PJ-3-22) to CCCC Sdn Bhd for the purpose of constructing a road towards adit entry facilities for the ECRL project that spans 2.3 km (1.8 hectare)
“The CCCC had started work without approval and enforcement action had been taken in December 2022,” he reportedly said.
He added that authorities are currently investigating the matter after a police report was lodged last December.
Environmental watchdog Rimba Disclosure Project pointed the finger at CCCC’s activities in the protected Selangor State Park, saying that it had found through satellite imagery questionable activities that looked like land clearing.
It then conducted a field probe around the locations and found notices of construction work had been erected, indicating that roads were being built for the Gombak-Port Klang section of the ECRL.
No EIA report
The Green Party of Malaysia said in a statement that it was saddened by the attitude of the federal government in allowing the clearing of parts of the Hulu Gombak Forest Reserve and Serendah Forest Reserve for the ECRL railway route without first obtaining the approval of the EIA report from the Department of Environment (DOE).
“The report we received from the Rimba Disclosure Project (RDP) based on the satellite image display clearly shows that at least four locations in the two forest reserves have been cleared recently.
“A review of the DOE website portal shows that the project owner, Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd, has not submitted an EIA report to the DOE,” said Green Party secretary-general Abdul Razak Ismail.
He said the Green Party was aware that the clearing was an “emergency route” of the federal government project as stated on the project signboard, but it should be in full compliance with the laws such as obtaining the EIA approval before the project is implemented.
He added that the party had been informed that an area within the Orang Asli village at Batu 17, Jalan Gombak was also cleared for use as a site office.
“It must be remembered that even though this project is a federal government project, it is also bound to the Selangor State Forestry Enactment where the parties concerned must observe a 25-year logging moratorium approved in the Selangor state assembly in 2010 when the late Khalid Ibrahim was MB Selangor to protect forest reserves in the state of Selangor.
“Because of this, the Green Party calls on the natural resources, environment & climate change minister (Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad) to monitor this matter and take appropriate action against the project owner,” he said. - Mkini
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