Anti-incinerator group fumes over MPS' failure to display EIA report

Summary

• The Rawang Tolak Incinerator Network criticises Selayang Municipal Council for failing to make the Sultan Idris Shah Green Energy Plant’s EIA report available on May 7 as required.

• The group calls for accountability and urges the Environment Department to extend the public feedback period due to the delay in access.

The Rawang Tolak Incinerator Network (RTI) has chastised the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) for its alleged failure to put the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report on the Sultan Idris Shah Green Energy Plant on public display.

This is despite the fact that the document is supposed to be available at three designated locations since May 7, including the MPS’ premises.

RTI claimed that when its representatives turned up at MPS’ office today, they were informed that the document is not yet ready for public viewing because it had just received it today.

In addition, the MPS Town Planning Department director and deputy director were out-of-office, and thus could not approve the viewing of the report.

The RTI decried this as an infringement of residents’ right to full and timely access to the EIA report and its contents.

“This delay is unacceptable and humiliating, since the Environment Department’s (DOE) official notice clearly states that the report will be on public display from May 7 and June 5, and public feedback can be submitted until June 20.

“The failure to prepare the document affects the community’s right to participate meaningfully in the decision-making process and again raises serious questions about the project’s transparency and accountability.

Malaysiakini has contacted MPS for comment.

RTI urged those responsible for the failure to be publicly held accountable, while the MPS must rectify the situation without further delay.

It also urged the DOE to extend the public feedback period for the project due to the failure to provide access to the document from day one.

Residents’ opposition

The Sultan Idris Shah Green Energy Plant is a proposed waste-to-energy plant in Batu Arang, Rawang, and is one of several such plants approved by the state government.

Upon completion, the plant is slated to burn up to 2,400 tonnes of municipal solid waste per day and generate up to 48 megawatts of electricity.

Further phases of the project could expand the facility with an additional plant to process up to 100 tonnes of scheduled waste per day, and another plant with a capacity of 1,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste per day.

Batu Arang residents have opposed the project over health, safety and environmental concerns.

Another major reason for residents’ pushback is Batu Arang’s geographic structure, as the town is located on former open-cast coal mines, which the group said makes the land unstable and poses a risk of collapse.

RTI has said that there are coal seams about 50km long under Batu Arang, and a waste-to-energy plant opens the possibility of fires or an explosion.

The DOE recently issued a notice that the EIA report for the project is going on public display for one month, while members of the public can provide feedback to the DOE until June 20.

Apart from the MPS office, it is also available for viewing at DOE’s libraries at its Putrajaya headquarters and Shah Alam office.

The document can also be viewed online, but not downloaded, during the public display period.

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