The government is still toying with the idea of building the waste incinerator in Kampung Broga, Semenyih.

Housing and Local Government Minister Ong Ka Ting said that the proposal was still under study and the matter has been raised in cabinet several times.

Cheaper and more environmentally friendly options have been mulled over by the cabinet, said Ong according to Bernama today.

Ong's comments were one of the very rare government statements on the controversial project, which residents living near the area had vehemently campaigned against.

Previously, the government had argued that the 1,500-tonne capacity plant - the biggest of its kind in the world - was safe and necessary to solve the garbage disposal woes in the Klang Valley.

Looming legal battle

Opponents to the project however said the government should instead encourage recycling and other environmentally friendly waste reduction methods.

Furthermore, the claim that cancer-causing emissions from the plant would pollute the Semenyih water-catchment area nearby, which supplies water to a large portion of the Klang Valley and the national administrative capital of Putrajaya.

Led by Kg Broga resident Alice Lee, a committee set-up to oppose the incinerator filed a suit on Nov 2003 to seek full project details.

The case is set for mention on Sept 22, where the federal government is expected to be named as the main defendant.

The RM1.5 billion mammoth incinerator project was relocated to Broga in Nov 2002 following intense public objection from residents within the original location of suburban Puchong, just outside of Kuala Lumpur.