KUALA LUMPUR: Kuantan MP Fuziah Salleh has lashed out at the Lynas project in Gebeng, Kuantan, saying it could affect villagers living nearby.
Fuziah claimed that after just five years of operations and dumping of radioactive waste on site, as well as the scheduled waste amounting to 1.5 million tonnes and the groundwater beneath, the site was already contaminated with heavy metals.
“This will have an effect on the villagers living around Gebeng, some of whom are still dependent on tube wells for their daily water use.
“It will also pollute the waterways around Gebeng,” she said in a statement.
Fuziah, who is also Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, also said many people had misconstrued the issue, especially radioactive waste management.
“It is easy to fall for the low-level radiation narrative.
“Lynas has always been silent on the long life – 14 billion years – of thorium in the radioactive waste.
“Unfortunately, many people in the government also do not comprehend the real pertinent waste management issue.
“They are convinced by the narratives imparted to the public,” she added.
Fuziah said they welcomed foreign direct investment except for Lynas.
“However, industries that pollute and think they are above the law are not welcome in Kuantan and Pahang,” she said.
On March 24, Lynas Malaysia Radiation Safety general manager Prof Dr Ismail Bahari said there was no basis to claims that Lynas Advanced Materials Plant in Gebeng could cause a chemical waste contamination incident similar to that in Pasir Gudang, Johor. — Bernama
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