Claims of safety for Lynas plant is based on selective science

I refer to the article "Thorium Lynas tidak berbahaya - A. Rahman Omar" published in Malaysian Insider [1].  He claims that Lynas' waste is safe because the radioactivity is very low.  But he conveniently ignored the fact that the WLP waste is still almost 40 times greater than background levels [2].  We oppose the plant because there is no scientific consensus on how safe this level is.

Some scientists believe that the IAEA has grossly underestimated the risks of internal emitters.  They formed the European Committee on Radiation Risk (ECRR) to challenge IAEA's International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) risk assessment model.  One of the proponents of the ECRR, Chris Busby opined that the ICRP may have underestimated the risk of inhaled thorium internal emitters by 100-200 times [3].

Lynas' waste as harmless as table salt? Really?

A very well researched and written article by Mr Soo Jin Hou which was denied publication elsewhere....for what reason, I do not know.

In a highly publicized press conference on 3 April 2012, Lynas demonstrated that their WLP waste is lower in radioactivity than table salt [1] [2].  The implication of this experiment is very detrimental to the stop Lynas campaign.  One of the main rebuttal against the IAEA review is that its International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) model has underestimated the risk of internal emitters, which are radioactive particles that are ingested or inhaled.  If the common salt has higher radioactivity than Lynas' wastes, the entire argument on internal emitters will be void

.

Solid waste management or sordid waste management?

 Despite a lot of hard selling by the deputy prime minister in the Sun and the NST today, I am still skeptical that we tax and rate payers will be getting a rakyat  diutamakan deal out of the 22 years concession granted to Alam Flora Sdn Bhd, SWM Environment Sdn Bhd and Environment Idaman Sdn Bhd pertaining to waste management.

http://www.thesundaily.my/news/149079

http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/3wstt-2/Article/

Permission for Lynas to operate in Australia... not!

Lynas' executive chairman Nick Curtis claims that they have permission from the Australian government to set up the entire rare earth processing and waste disposal facilities in Australia. This license was actually granted to Ashton Rare Earth Limited in 1992, but was fully transferred to Lynas through a series of corporate exercise. Lynas has often used this license as a means to discredit the rationale of those who oppose the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) in Gebeng. After all, given Australia's tough environmental laws, if it is approved in Australia, why kick up a fuss in Malaysia?

Lynas: an injustice most taxing

Malaysians are no strangers to skewed agreements. From IPP subsidies to guaranteed profits for highway concessionaires, the public has on numerous times endured the consequences of sheer governmental incompetence. Yet, the 12-year tax exemption given to Lynas may prove to be the biggest blunder ever. Lynas is projected to make about AUD 6.2 billion in pre-tax profit in 2012 and 2013 and in exchange, we allow them to contaminate our land for free.

The graph below shows the spectacular rise in rare earth price since Q3 2010. While gold’s bull run has been getting plenty of attention of late, the real star is rare earth, which has taken off to astronomical heights. For Lynas, the price of the rare earths from Mount Weld may increase 15.7 times from JP Morgan’s estimate by the time the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) begins production in 2012.

Hill side development again, not again?

One of my friends who is staying in Taman Melati was very pissed off.

If I am in his position, I would too.

My friend bought a condo unit in Platinium Hill so that his family can enjoy fresh air, nice breeze from the wonderfully forested hill accross the highway.

And see the latest development here.

What was once a lush, eco-balancing god's gift to Malaysians have been torn apart for "development's sake"

Let's take a look at the DBKL hill side development guidelines here

http://klcityplan2020.dbkl.gov.my/eis/?page_id=173

4.7.6 General Guidelines


• Development in Hillside must observe the following general guide:

a) To preserve the existing character of areas with mature trees

b) To keep the cutting of existing mature trees to a minimum, and ensure adequate replacement of trees that are removed.

c) To keep the cutting of the existing natural topography to a minimum

d) To maintain the low density detached residential character of the area

e) To maintain existing road widths and road network

f ) To control building heights such that they do not exceed the existing tree heights.

ok, so must keep the buildings lower than the trees and not to cut too many trees eh?

Take a look at the blog site set up for this project by the developer, there is a video and it shows the lush forest before the cutting and landscaping operation:

Source:

http://3residen.blogspot.com/

Helluva lot of trees were cut down (and need to be replanted???), the landscape has been changed so much that the resident monkeys would have problem recognising it and I do not think any trees can grow to be as tall as those lovely classy condos.

This site is not that far from Bukit Antarangasa, remember them?

http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/Malaysia/Story/A1Story20090215-122041.html

Following the Bukit Antarabangsa landslide which killed five people and forced thousands to evacuate their homes, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had called on local authorities to ban all hillside development.

So after the Highland Towers tragedy and another landslide which killed some more, the then DPM said something very logical...only for this rebuke

Despite the controversies involving hillside development, there will be no blanket ban on such projects.

Works Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Zin Mohamed, who disclosed this, said this was because the country's population was increasing and land was needed for development.

Something never change, even though you got a promotion, eh?

The Plastic Bag Day

Tesco has 18 stores in Shanghai and I happen to be in one of them. Being in this place reminds me of Penang- which has every Monday declared a 'no-plastic-bag day' from July 1st 2009 onwards. On Mondays, in Penang, shopppers get charged RM0.20 per plastic bag if they don't bring their own bags. But the similarity in terms of plastic bags end here because in China, every day is a plastic bag day.

In China since June 2008, the usage of plastic bags less than 0.0025mm thick is banned nationwide. Thicker bags are still being produced and available but shoppers are required to pay for them at about the yuan-equivalent of 5 US cents. Bags under 0.0025mm, considered ultra-thin, are a bane to China's environment. The plastic bag ban hasn't made Shanghai's air better or anything close to it, but then again China uses 37 million barrels of oil a year to produce plastic bags. In May 2009 survey, there has been a 66% decrease in plastic bag usage since the ban. To think about the monstrous resource savings that has been achieved is just incredible.

Back over to Malaysia, can you think of anything progressive that's being done for the environment except for Penang's plastic bag inititiative, because I can't come up with any examples.

Hazy, smog, poison air whatever you call it .....

This darn Indonesians never learn eh? Life for them not challenging enough, izzit? Every year burn and pollute the air, as if we other Aseans have forgotten about you.

7 a.m. this morning, cough! choke!

I also wonder about our Health Minister, the raising star of MCA. In Hong Kong, H1N1 flu was closely monitored, advice and public warnings issued and kindergartens were suspended for 2 weeks. Here, not even a "be careful, drink more water, wear mask etc" was whispered.

All I remember was some Chinese press reported that a head mater in a school in Melaka prohibited students from wearing mask due to fear of er...meningitis or something....because "wearing of mask will create the wrong impression." Er...mate, in Hong Kong and Japan, considerate people wear mask when they have ordinary cold or flu....too much of growing up in a controlled press environment for the headmaster then.

Massive tree-cutting at Jalan Genting Kelang

The massive tree-cutting exercise along Jalan Genting Kelang which has been happening the last couple of weeks, looks completed by now. This exercise carried out by DBKL drew concern from many Wangsa Maju residents including Wangsa Maju MP Wee Choo Keong. The MP took up the matter against DBKL, and here's his letter to DBKL published at his blogsite:

31hb Mac, 2008

Yg Bhg Dato’ Ab Hakim Bin Borhan

Datuk Bandar Kuala Lumpur

Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur

Tingkat 27, Bangunan DBKL

Jalan Raja Laut

50350 Kuala Lumpur

Yg. Bhg. Dato’

Per: Penebangan Pokok Di Sepanjang Jalan Genting-Kelang

Dengan hormatnya saya merujuk kepada perkara yang tersebut di atas.

Untuk makluman pihak tuan, saya telah menerima banyak aduan daripada penduduk-penduduk Wangsa Maju bahawa sejurus selepas Pilihanraya Umum ke-12 diadakan, banyak pokok-pokok matang di sepanjang Jalan Genting-Kelang telah ditebang tanpa apa-apa notis.

Amatlah dihargai sekiranya pihak tuan dapat memaklumkan kepada saya dengan kadar seberapa segera atas perkara-perkara berikut:-

i) kenapa pokok-pokok matang tersebut ditebang tanpa pemberian notis awam dan ditebang selepas Pilihanraya Umum;

ii) sekiranya pokok-pokok matang tersebut ditebang untuk tujuan sesebuah projek, sila maklumkan secara terperinci berkenaan dengan projek tersebut seperti “nature of project”, syarikat mana yang telah diberikan projek tersebut dan nilai projek tersebut; dan

iii) sama ada pemberian projek tersebut telah diadakan secara tender terbuka dan sekiranya bukan melalui tender terbuka, alasan kenapa tiada tender terbuka dilakukan.

Saya berharap perkara tersebut di atas dapat diperjelaskan dengan seberapa segera supaya saya dapat memaklumkan perkara berkenaan kepada penduduk-penduduk Wangsa Maju sewajarnya.

Sekian, terima kasih.

Yang benar,

Wee Choo Keong

A quick check at Jalan Genting Kelang during last weekend showed what happened:

It's a widespread assumption among local folk that the tree- felling exercise is the part of a road-widening project taking place at Jalan Genting Kelang/ Jalan Setapak. I'll welcome a road project that will ease traffic congestion in this area anytime; however, the town council has the right to inform the residents what's happening!