PARLIAMENT | Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Dr Adham Baba said the government will make a decision on Lynas’ proposed plan to construct a permanent disposal facility (PDF) in Gebeng, Pahang, in November.
He said the government had received the Radiological Impact Assessment (RIA) and the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports in September and will need two months to review them.
“I want to inform that the construction at the Gebeng industrial area... that area has not been involved in any major floods since 2014.
“The proposed site has also been raised five metres from sea level and the sea level in Gebeng is safe as well, so the PDF construction will proceed.
“The RIA and EIA have been submitted, the evaluation is being done now and a decision will be made in November whether we will approve the PDF construction,” Adham (above) said.
He was responding to a question from Fuziah Salleh (Pakatan Harapan-Kuantan) during the question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Fuziah had questioned the rationale of choosing that particular site in Gebeng for the PDF as she said that area has underground water that is less than one metre from the surface, raising concerns of floods.
Adham said based on preliminary reviews of the RIA report – which was commissioned due to the flood concerns – the area where the proposed PDF construction site is has a low risk of floods.
It was previously reported that the proposed site for Lynas’ PDF is located in the Gebeng Industrial Estate, which is 30 metres from the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (Lamp).
The EIA report, which was published on Oct 12, stated that the PDF project would not pose a flood risk or lead to pollution of underground water and Sungai Baluk – the nearest river to the site – unless the worst-case scenario happens during the construction phase.
Members of the public can view the EIA report until Nov 10. The deadline for feedback is Nov 25. - Mkini
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