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Extracted from
Malaysiakini
Worries over
Tony
Thien
Aug 10,
A leading Sarawak NGO has voiced its concern over reports of the
involvement of Australian mining giant Rio Tinto in the new
multi-billion Ringgit aluminium smelter plant in
The Miri-based Borneo Research Institute Malaysia (Brimas), a NGO
dedicated to protecting the environment and the rights of indigenous peoples,
said Rio Tinto’s track record is the worrying factor
“We are deeply concerned because Rio Tinto has a bad record in industrial
pollution almost everywhere it operates, especially in Eastern Indonesia where
the local communities have been suffering due to its mining activities there,”
Brimas programme co-ordinator Mark Bujang told Malaysiakini today.
On Tuesday, Rio Tinto Aluminium signed its initial agreement with Sarawak Chief
Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud’s family-controlled Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd (CMSB) to
undertake a detailed feasibility study of the project being planned in Similajau
outside Bintulu in
A joint venture company Sarawak Aluminium Company is being set up with the
Australian-based global mining company holding 60% of the equity and CMSB the
remaining 40%.
It will be able to tap the energy from the 2,400mw Bakun hydro dam which is
expected to be completed between 2010 and 2011. About 1,000mw of electricity is
to be used by the smelter plant.
Major
health risk
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Taib said the project was expected to provide
employment, directly and indirectly, to about 5,000 people and to attract
investment of about RM30 billion on infrastructure.
Bujang said it was obvious that energy-intensive industries were
needed to justify the huge government investment on the Bakun dam otherwise it
would turn be a white elephant.
But the choice of a smelter plant was bad as it would cause serious pollution
and become a major health risk to the people living in the surrounding areas,
he added.
Bujang suggested that a public inquiry be held prior to the start of the
project to get feedbacks from the people instead of listening only to one side
of the opinion.
"The fact that Rio Tinto, with its well-known track record as a major
industrial polluter, is involved indicated that our country’s laws are
weak," he added.
Meanwhile Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) field officer Jok Jau told Malaysiakini that a proper assessment
on the impact from the environmental, economic and social aspects should be
undertaken by a neutral party in a transparent manner.
He said it was likely that with a massive project of that nature it could
involve relocating the communities living close to the area of its operations.
The implementation of the Bakun project involved the resettlement of 10,000
people and many of the problems related to resettlement had not been resolved.
If it necessitated the surrounding communities to be resettled, this would add
to the existing problems regarding the resettlement of people in Bakun, Jok
said.
"Existing projects in Bintulu like the LNG plant were already polluting
the environment the residents of Bintulu town and the surrounding areas.
‘Political
cost’
"The proposed smelter plant would worsen the pollution problem," he
added.
Describing it as ‘political cost,’ Patau said the government should be careful
when it comes to spending tax-payers’ money otherwise the state would end up
incurring huge losses in investment such as in 1st Silicon wafer fab located in
Kuching.
Another Sarawak NGO Dayak Iban Association (Sadia) secretary-general Nicholas
Munjah also expressed concern over the impact of the proposed smelter plant on
the communities living within the area.
He said the authorities should look at all angles - environmental, social and
economic - before proceeding with the project.
Opposition state PKR Stampin branch chairperson and legal advisor See Chee How
said in a statement that the setting up of the plant must be preceded by an
open and independent study into its social and environmental impacts besides
the economic feasibility of the project.
The studies should then be fully disclosed to all Sarawakians and debated upon
before implementation, he added.