MEDIA STATEMENT BY WONG TACK, BENTONG MP ON 31 JANUARY, 2020.
1. With the intention to pacify their shareholders, Lynas has made an irresponsible announcement yesterday which has caused unnecessary anxiety to the people of Kuantan.
2. In their announcement Lynas says :
i) the Pahang government has approved Bukit Ketam as the site to build a PDF to dump more than a million tons of Lynas’ toxic radioactive wastes.
My question is how did the location to build the biggest radioactive dumpsite in the world got approved without a Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIA) and public consultation?
ii) they will only pay a maximum of USD98 million for the construction and operations of their massive radioactive waste dump. The final payment will be made in 2026. Not a single sen will be paid by Lynas thereafter.
My question is who will end up paying for the monitoring and maintenance of Lynas’ radioactive dump after that? Our children and future generations? And for how long? Millions of years?
iii) they intend to withdraw the USD50 million security deposit that they have placed with the AELB to partially finance the construction and operations of their radioactive dump.
This absurd move by Lynas should be a cause of serious concern for all Malaysians as it proves that Lynas is financially incapable to deal with their massive pile of radioactive wastes.
In any responsible country, deposits such as this is required to ensure that the polluter cleans up after they packed up. It is important to note that after Lynas shuts down, the decommissioning of the plant and environmental remediation activities will further generate wastes which need to be disposed of.
The USD50 mil amount was previously set based on the agreement that all radioactive wastes generated by Lynas will be removed from our country.
So, rather than allowing Lynas to prematurely withdraw their security deposit, the AELB must instead substantially increase the amount required from Lynas to appropriately address the long term risk and monitoring cost that our children will have to bear for probably millions of years once Lynas packs up and leaves us with their millions of tons of wastes.
For as long as Lynas’ toxic radioactive wastes remain on our soil, this security deposits must not be allowed to be withdrawn!
3. We strongly urge the MESTECC to apply wisdom and exercise their duties and responsibilities to ensure our people’s wellbeing, nation’s sovereignty and environmental integrity are protected.
4. Lynas’ operating licence which will expire on 2 March, 2020 must not be renewed!
