KUALA LUMPUR, June 3 ― Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tunku Jaafar has joined several calls for the Penang South Reclamation project to be cancelled.
He said he has been against the project since it was first brought to his attention during his time as the minister of natural resources and environment in 2017.
“Even though now the report has been approved on June 25 in 2019 by the Department of Environment, I am still in disagreement with the approval and I wholly support for the project to be cancelled,” he said in a statement issued today.
He said he was firmly against the project as it would lead to serious negative socio-economic and environmental impacts, which was substantiated with facts and data.
“I again strongly support for the EIA report to be reviewed for disapproval and this mega project to be cancelled,” he said, referring to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report that DoE had approved.
Wan Junaidi said the EIA report clearly stated that there will be permanent destruction to the site of the project which will negatively impact on fisheries resources, fishermen and the security of the country's food supply by affecting the breeding ground for fish, prawns and crabs.
“There will be irreversible damage and residual impact on the mudflat ecosystem, fishing ground, turtle landing and part of the coral reef at Rimau Island which is an important ecosystem to the fishery resource,” he said.
He said in 2017, Penang's marine aquaculture industry accounted for 55 per cent of Malaysia's US$700 million (RM2.886 billion) annual marine harvests, where the area under threat has an estimated wholesale value of fish worth US10 million (RM41 million).
“The negative socio-economic impact from the reclamation plan will affect the livelihood of about 1,800 fishermen around Penang area and their families, with the possibility that the fishermen community will be wiped out,” he said.
He said this project will also affect some 4,500 fishermen in Perak, as well as those in Kedah, whose livelihood depended heavily on harvesting marine resources in the area.
“Do note that the northern coast of Penang is a mangrove area, which is the breeding ground for prawns, crabs and fishes,” he said.
He pointed out that the marine ecosystem around Penang island is also the swimming paths of the Into-Pacific Humpback Dolphin and the Into-Pacific Finless Porpoise which will be affected by the contamination and pollution from the reclamation project.
The EIA report also showed findings that there are records of the Olive Ridley turtle landings, including the Green Turtle (Chelonia Mydas) at Teluk Kumar, Gertak Sanggul, Pantai Medan, Teluk Tempoyak and Pantai Belanda.
“The mega project will definitely wipe out the landing and nesting ground of the turtles and we will lose out on the ecosystem chain provided by the turtles,” he said.
He said there will also be sand mining effects, which will not be only confined to the specific dredge or dump site but to a wider area due to the water currents.
Millions of tonnes of marine sand that was mined and rocks quarried for the land reclamation will significantly impact the seabed flora and fauna while the dumping of the marine sand and rocks at the site will bury original biodiversity and habitats, he said.
“The country should not allow for such mega development, which severely affects our environment, to take place as such actions would have an impact on Malaysia's international commitments and treaties,” he said.
Malaysia's international commitments included the Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, a pledge for the Nationally Determined Contribution on enhancing our carbon reduction initiatives, the Biodiversity Convention and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
He stressed that the environmental impact will not only affect Balik Pulau coastal area but will also spread out to the southern and northern portion of the straits area, impacting Kedah and Perak.
“The major pollution discharge will certainly have an enormous impact on the northern part of Malacca Straits,” he said.
He said the reclamation project will put an end to sustainable use of seas and marine resources by permanent destruction of the marine sites.
He warned that such projects will generate more carbon dioxide which is in violation of Malaysia's pledge to reduce carbon emissions while adding to rising global temperatures.
“In the face of the climate crisis, the mega project is environmentally bad and it is dismissive of all the available research that caution against commissioning it,” he said.
He told the state government that there are alternative proposals for its transportation requirements which cost less to alleviate the traffic congestion problem in the state.
He too said there was plenty of land in the mainland area of the state for any form of development to boost its socio-economic development, whether it is for heavy, medium or small scale industries.
“We must not be in a situation where we destroy our environment, natural heritage and affect the livelihood of our fishing community for a nominal gain as compared to what we are losing,” he said.
He said there was no form of mitigation measures that can ease the losses that the state and country will face if the mega project was allowed to be carried out.
Wan Junaidi is the second minister to call for the project to be cancelled.
Yesterday, Kepala Batas MP Datuk Seri Reezal Merican Naina Merican, who is youth and sports minister, said the project should be cancelled.
Earlier this week, Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar has also called for the project to be cancelled.
The Consumers Association of Penang and Sahabat Alam Malaysia then reiterated their calls for the project to be cancelled.
Civil society groups including Penang Forum and fishermen’s groups have repeatedly called for the project to be cancelled over the past few years.
The reclamation project, now renamed as Penang South Islands (PSI) project, was the state's plan to create three islands off the southern coast of Penang island.
The PSI is the funding module for the state’s mega infrastructure project ― the RM46 billion Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).
It was estimated to cost the project delivery partner, SRS Consortium, about RM11 billion to reclaim the three islands ― A, B and C ― which will make available a total 4,500 acres of lands.
The state plan to sell lands created on the islands to raise funds for the PTMP that included a Light Rail Transit (LRT) and the controversial Pan Island Link 1 (PIL1) highway.
PIL1 is a 19.5km highway that was estimated to cost RM7.5 billion while the LRT, to cover 29.5km, was estimated to cost RM8.4 billion.
