Second rare earth mine found in Negri Sembilan

Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun. -filepic

KUALA PILAH: An illegal rare earth elements (REE) mine has been found operating in Sg Muntoh in Jelebu.

This comes days after the state authorities uncovered what is believed to be illegal mining of REE in a Seri Menanti village.

Also read: Illegal rare earth mine uncovered in Kuala Pilah

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun said the state Land and Mines Department had carried out a check after receiving a tip-off on the activity on Thursday (May 25).

"They decided to check out the site on the same night and later discovered that the mine which is also believed to have been operating illegally was located on private land,” said Aminuddin.

"We believe the activity has also encroached into government-owned land and investigations are ongoing," he added, saying that the authorities have yet to establish the size of the area.

No arrests were made during the raid.

Aminuddin expressed hope the public would continue to report such cases to the authorities.

He said this is important as these activities were carried out in remote places which were difficult to detect.

"We will continue to carry out operations to put a stop to such activities. Rewards will also be given to informants," he said.

Aminuddin said REE mining was also more profitable compared to sand or quarry mining and the operations area was also smaller.

On May 24, Aminuddin said the authorities uncovered an illegal REE mine in a village in Seri Menanti on May 16 following a tip-off.

They later found equipment used to mine REE on two lots of land in the area.

The mining method used was in-situ leaching, which does not need a large area to carry out.

However, Aminuddin did not state who owned the property.