Growing calls in Sabah for public forum on coal

Green lobbyists in Sabah are increasingly demanding a public forum on the coal option for the state and winning support. This follows growing fears that the state might be slowly inching towards the coal option.

Most telling was Sabah Chief Minister Musa Aman's remark in the current State Assembly sitting that "more people will be angry if the coal option was not pursued".

The Sepa (Sabah Environmental Protection Association) is taking the lead among those going public with their views on why a public forum should be held.

"Kampung Sinakut - the proposed site of the 300 MW coal-fired power plant - is part of a totally pristine coastline 40 km long between Tungku and Dent Haven," said Sepa president Wong Tack. "This is Sabah's last wilderness frontier."

Among other reasons to veto the coal plant in Sinakut, Wong cited the snow-white sandy beaches in the area, the coral life in Darvel Bay which has been hailed as the only remaining stretch of unpolluted waters in Sabah. This has prompted the emergence of the area as the seaweed production centre in the country.

"Once set up, the coal plant will draw millions of litres of pure seawater everyday and then inject chlorine into it to kill organisms like barnacles. Then, millions of litres of water will be discharged back into the sea everyday for a century," explained Wong.

"What will happen to this pristine sea when it is over?"

"... insanity to build polluting plant in pristine wilderness"

Wong labels it as insanity to build a highly polluting power plant in pristine wilderness. M&E consultants, when contacted, concede that the use of chlorine is necessary to prevent the growth of organisms on the inner surface of the condenser pipes at the proposed coal-fired power station.

The nearby 120,000 hectare Tabin Wildlife Reserve also provides some cause for concern, according to Wong. This is also the proposed site for an ambitious fenced-up Rhino breeding programme in the natural forests.

"What will happen when they open the valves of the chimneys at the power plant at night and fine coal ash is sent billowing into the atmosphere?" asked Wong. "This fine ash is not only dry but oily in nature. When it settles on the canopy of a forest like Tabin, it will stick to the leaves and impede photosynthesis.

Ten years of this is all it takes to sicken a major forest like Tabin."

Last, but not least, Wong points out that the Sinakut location was announced without consulting the kampung folks. "The feeling is not good," observed Wong. "They are asking why impose the coal plant on them after Silam and Sandakan rejected it?"

Sepa has instead prepared alternatives to the proposed coal option.

Wong reckons that the money can be put to better use if used on a Keningau-Tawau transmission loop to hook up with the on-going 300 MW Kimanis gas power station and the 180 MW Ulu Tomani hydro dam. The Sepa chief is confident that this will deliver an extra 500 MW of electricity from the west coast to the energy-starved east coast.

"Additional needs can be met by increasing Kimanis to 750 MW," said Wong. "Ranhill is also building an extra 190 MW at the Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park to ease the load."

Security concerns not an issue

Wong does not see security concerns, often cited by Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB), as an issue.

"SESB argues that the east coast grid should not depend on the west coast grid for security reasons. If that is so, what about the transmission risk from Felda to Lahad Datu and 300 km to Tawau or Sandakan?" asked Wong. "Why isn't security of the transmission suddenly an issue here?"

Worldwide studies show, according to Sepa, that blackouts are seldom caused by damage to transmission lines but more to inappropriate design problems. In Sabah, Sepa has encountered only two instances when problems with the transmission lines caused black-outs. The first was caused by an old tree falling and snapping high tension wires near the Pangi hydro plant. The other was due to metal thieves dismantling a transmission tower.

"SESB did not use one-way bolts which would otherwise have made it impossible for anyone to unscrew anything," chuckled Wong.

Sapp (Sabah Peoples Progressive Party) is calling for a survey as well, particularly in Tungku and around Sinakut, "gauge the people's reactions to the proposed coal-fired power plant". ‘The black smoke that the Biomass Power Plant is producing in Tungku now is already causing the locals to feel unsettled," pointed out Sapp president Yong Teck Lee (right) . "The residue settles on their walls and windows."

Luyang state assemblyperson hints darkly that if the coal plant goes ahead, it will be "Project First, People Later". She was taking a cynical crack at Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak's 1Malaysia Administration's "People First, Performance Now" theme.

SESB managing director Baharin Din meanwhile wants to give the public assurance that everyone will be invited to give their views during the first three months of next year. "This is for the purpose of the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) report," said Baharin.

It is also understood that the state government wants a briefing from Tenaga Nasional, the SESB parent company, as soon as possible on the coal option for Sabah. "We are taken aback as well when the PM suddenly announced the coal plant to be sited in Felda," said state minister for Tourism, Culture and Environment Masidi Manjun in a text message. "We have to wait for the EIA before saying anything."