Exco Puzzled Why Incinerator Protests Persist After Satisfying Meeting

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Local Government and Tourism state executive councillor Ng Suee Lim is puzzled as to why there are still protests against plans to build waste-to-energy (WTE) incinerators in the state.
He said that to his understanding, the Rawang Tolak Incinerator Network (RTI) had met with the state government's subsidiary, Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Bhd (KDEB) Waste Management, regarding the incinerators.
He was led to believe that both parties were satisfied with the outcome of the discussions.
"There was a thorough understanding and communication, and they explained for many hours, and everyone was satisfied.
"However, despite that, they continue to protest outside (incinerator projects),” Ng said at a press conference in Shah Alam yesterday.
"However, we will continue to maintain an open attitude to listen. What are the areas they are not satisfied with - whether it's our explanations or something else?
"Do they have other questions they want to understand from our reports?" he added.
Health concerns
Last week, around 300 people attended an RTI-organised protest outside the site of a proposed incinerator plant in Batu Arang.
It was previously reported that two WTE incinerators are expected to operate simultaneously within a 15km radius of Rawang town.
The first incinerator is the Sultan Idris Shah (SIS) WTE Green Energy Plant in Batu Arang, which is under the purview of the state government
The second is the relocated WTE incinerator by the Housing and Local Government Ministry which was initially planned to be built at Taman Beringin, Kepong, and was later moved to Rawang.
Those against the incinerators cite concerns over health and environmental risks.
They also claim that the state government has been dodging them on the matter.
However, Ng denied this by saying RTI need only submit a letter to secure a meeting.
"I need to check, as I only saw their statements in the media and don't know if they have sent any letters.
"If there are letters, our Selangor state government maintains an open attitude and is willing to meet with any organisation," he said.
Sustainable solution needed
Meanwhile, Ng said that Malaysia is lagging behind in WTE conversion.
"We have missed out on a golden 20 years. In terms of WTE conversion, we are at least 20 years behind Singapore.
"We have been using landfills for waste disposal, and this method is not sustainable.
"There must be adjustments and breakthroughs; otherwise, we are being irresponsible on environmental issues," he added.
He stresses that the current landfill method is unsustainable, not environmentally friendly and results in a significant waste of land.
When met later, Ng also revealed that the plan to construct an incinerator on Batu Arang is currently in the draft stage of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report. - Mkini

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