The environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the controversial incinerator project proposed in Broga is a total waste of good money, the Broga/Semenyih No Incinerator pro tem action committee said today.

Its chairperson Halil Hussain, in declaring that residents are no longer confident in the study, said several factors led them to believe that it was a waste of taxpayers' money.

He said this at the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia headquarters in Kuala Lumpur yesterday where he and a score of residents had been scheduled to attend a dialogue with government officials regarding the RM1.5 billion thermal incinerator scheduled to start operations in 2007.

Sensitive zone

"Based o­n the scientific facts we have collected, we feel the EIA should not be conducted in this area in the first place," said Halil.

"Scant attention is given to agreed international policies such as Agenda 21 o­n environmental protection and the available research work conducted by the authorities."

Further, the whole area has been marked as an environmentally-sensitive zone, according to a RM3 million study by the Construction Industry Development Board ( Lestari ), an independent research body under Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, commissioned by the Selangor government.

"Why do we even need an EIA when the area is clearly out of bounds?" he asked.

Halil also cited the UN Agenda 21 sustainable development programme that Malaysia and Selangor had endorsed in 1992 and 1998 respectively, and the 10-year development plan draft for Semenyih, Beranang and Bangi, saying the area was "totally unsuitable for any development".

"The o­nly activities allowed in the area are for recreation, research and education. This is because it has been declared as the Hulu Langat permanent forest reserve."

He said any development will cause an imbalance to the ecological system because there was a series of geographical fault lines underneath the area, making it potentially unstable and endangering nearby residential areas.

"The area is also hilly with average slopes of more than 25 degrees, and the state has declared a moratorium over developments o­n such slopes," said Halil.

The Broga committee also pointed out that the proposed site was within a water catchment area with tributaries running into Sungai Semenyih, a major artery within the Semenyih water catchment network.

"This river is a source of water intake for the Jenderam treatment plant which supplies water to millions of households in and around the Klang Valley, including Serdang, Kota Kemuning, Klang, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya," added Halil.

No dialogues

The committee has revised the population it represents to 400,000 which covers about 25 residential estates in and around Broga, Semenyih, Beranang and Kajang.

However, the residents may be running out of 'proper channels' for their objections.

The scheduled dialogue arranged by Suhakam yesterday was aborted after government officials failed to turn up due to a directive from Wisma Putra.

Suhakam complaints and inquiry working group chairperson Prof Mohd Hamdan Adnan said all requests to government agencies for information would now have to go through the Foreign Ministry, whose minister is responsible for human rights issues in Malaysia.

On top of that, the Housing and Local Government Ministry has ' banned ' dialogues until the EIA is completed in May.

On that, a very disappointed Halil said: "I have no faith in this EIA because we cannot even have a dialogue during the study stage as required by the Department of Environment (DOE)."

Citing the draft terms of reference of the EIA, he said dialogues with the local population and property owners who are affected by the project, are required during the socio-economic study stage.

Public feedback o­n the terms of reference, which determines the scope of work to be done by the EIA consultant, must be sent to the DOE by tomorrow, at the end of a three-week display.

Asked if he would continue to participate in the EIA procedures, Halil said: "We will because we have no choice. This is the o­nly avenue for us to state our objections, including declaring that we have no faith in the study itself."

University project

Meanwhile, the construction of the University of Nottingham in Malaysia's (UNiM) fourth campus - and its first outside Britain - in Broga has recommenced after it was shelved pending the outcome of official discussions with the state over the incinerator project.

A new notice board outlining the project details was seen at the site last Sunday, which residents said was erected o­n Saturday.

Ongoing earthworks were also visible from the proposed incinerator site atop a hill overlooking the valley where the campus project is.

University officials were unavailable for confirmation today.