8/6/2019 Gebeng Rare Earth Plant Protest- IPS Inter Press Service

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8/6/2019 Gebeng Rare Earth Plant Protest- IPS Inter Press Service

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Protesters said the thorium waste at Bukit Merah that were stored in drums in shallow holes in the ground is still

being cleaned up three decades later, underlining the long-term dangers of thorium.

"Lynas might come and go but we will be left to deal with the waste for many, many decades," said Salleh.

Lynas Corp. said it would be using raw materials with thorium content 50 times lower than that used Bukit Merah.

"This is due to the unique geology at Mount Weld," James said.

Government and Lynas officials have been trying to allay residents fears by holding several town hall meetings in

March and April to explain and clarify issues.

Residents - among them fisherman, farmers, small businessman, teachers and government employees - said they

were open to expert testimony that the plant would be safe, but they were adamant that the thorium waste be

shipped out.

"The waste must not be stored here or anywhere in Malaysia," said fisherman Yusuf Ahmad. "Why not process the

ore in Australia and keep the waste there," he told IPS, echoing a widely held belief that Lynas came to Gebeng

because it failed to get all the production licences in Australia.

"We want jobs, we want progress but we dont want the nuclear (sic) waste. See whats happening in Japan," Yusuf

said referring to the nuclear disaster there following a devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11.

Salleh said Lynas probably moved to Kuantan because of Australias tough environmental law and powerful Green

party, two elements missing in the Malaysian context.

Lynas, however said the plant, which cost 220 million dollars, had all the necessary approvals to operate in Australia

but moved to Kuantan to take advantage of good port facilities, a skilled workforce, and abundant water and other

resources.

The government is keen to allow Lynas to start operations because it needs foreign investments, and to promote a

whole new range of manufacturing in the state using the rare earth minerals produced at the plant.

The growing public protest is a major headache for the government, which suffered major reverses in the 2008general election, and is on a drive to win back public support with numerous populist measures.

There is also fear that the Gebeng plant would impact on the well-established tourism industry along the east

Malaysian coastline which enjoys some of the most breathtaking scenery in the country.

"Tourism earnings will also take a beating once the news spread overseas that a plant producing thorium waste is in

operation near the coast," Vincent Lau, a local resident who lives 30 kilometres from the plant, told IPS.

Residents are unconvinced there is a "safe and manageable side" to thorium unless a permanent solution is offered

to the still open question of where to store the waste. Until then, the protest is expected to continue. (FIN/2011)

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