Bauxite mining areas to become barren land
The bauxite mining areas in Bukit Goh, Bukit Kuantan and Bukit Sagu will become barren land when mining activities ceased to be carried out as the land there is no longer suitable to be used for agriculture or housing.
The head of the Geotechnical and Infrastructure Engineering Department, Faculty of Civil Engineering at Universiti Malaysia Pahang, Muzamir Hasan, said the structure and characteristics of the soil there had been disrupted and it would take a long time to return to normal.
"The land can no longer be used for some time, including for agriculture, as it is not fertile.
"The process to rehabilitate the land for the soil to get back the minerals and nutrients will take a long time.
"Likewise, if it is to be used for housing. It will take a long time for the land structure to become strong and compact again," Muzamir told Bernama in Kuantan today.
Piles of dug out earth near residences
He said the mining areas had to be covered with top soil to level it and then compressed with heavy machinery for a long period before it could be used for housing.
"The most worrying is the presence of the piles of earth that were dug out and heaped near residential areas. These can cause landslides and mud flood, if it rains heavily," he added.
Muzamir, who is a member of a committee formed by the government recently to study the best way of transporting the bauxite, said pollution caused by bauxite mining activities could be avoided with tighter standard operating procedures (SOP).
"The problem now is because there is no clear procedure, right from the mining technique."
A seminar would be held next month, Muzamir said, to find the best way to transport the mineral without polluting the environment.
- Bernama
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