No dam in Ulu Geruntum, say Perak officials

IPOH, March 8 — The Perak government said today a mini-hydroelectric dam will not be built in Ulu Geruntum, Gopeng.

State Rural Development, Agriculture, Plantation, Information and Human Capital Development Datuk Saarani Mohamad said that the contractor is only building a small hydropower plant there.

“People misunderstand the project. The contractor will not build any dam in the area and the Orang Asli in the villages should not be worried of flooding issues.

“The contractor is only going to build a small power house,” he told reporters at a press conference today. 

Saarani explained that about 70 per cent of water from the Ulu Geruntum River near Kampung Sat Baru will be channelled to the power house and will be released back to the same river.

“The waters will be taken from the weir and will be channelled to the power house, which is located about 4.3km from the weir, via the pipeline.

“The waters will then be released back to the river from the power house. The water also will be cleaner,” he said.

Saarani also said the villages which are located along the 4.3km stretch will not face any water shortage as there were seven tributaries bypassing the river between the stretch.

He also said that villagers in the affected stretch are the ones who should be blamed for the river pollution as they did not allow the contractor to complete their job.  

“Whenever there is land clearance near rivers, we can’t avoid the sediment from flowing into the river.

“However, we can overcome the problem by placing sandbags along the riverbanks. But, in this case, the villagers did not allow the contractor to complete their job,” he said.  

Saarani also pointed out that eco-tourism activities such as the whitewater rafting is conducted about 3km from the power house.

“The business of whitewater rafters and other tourism stakeholders will not be affected as the water will be released back to the river 3km before the place where they are operating.

“In fact, they will get a cleaner and quality river,” he said.

Saarani also said they will build a fence around the Orang Asli’s ancestor burial ground so that it will not be disturbed anymore.

He also said the contractor had paid compensation to about 50 per cent of the villagers who have lost their plantations and fruit trees. 

“For the balance 50 per cent, we will pay soon as the contractor is in the process of evaluating the worth of the land cleared,” he said.

Saarani also said the Orang Asli have been misled about the project by certain individuals who try to tarnish the image of the state government among the villagers there.

On March 1, Malay Mail reported that the livelihood of Orang Asli from six villages and tourism stakeholders is at risk following the construction of a mini hydroelectric dam in Ulu Geruntum, Gopeng.

The villages affected are Kampung Sungai Kapor Baru, Kampung Sat Baru, Kampung Sungai Ampang Main, Kampung Poh, Kampung Padang Berliku and Kampung Ulu Geruntum.

The Orang Asli in the affected villages said they had lost half their fruit tree plantations after the hydro dam contractor allegedly cleared land for the project without their consent.

They further alleged that this has contaminated the river that is also their main source of drinking water.

They also alleged that ancestral burial grounds, some of which are about a century old, were also destroyed.