GEORGE TOWN: The Penang government will discuss with the relevant authorities following a report that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the proposed Jelutong landfill rehabilitation and reclamation project had been rejected by the Department of Environment.
Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said he was not aware of the rejection indicated on the EIA portal and would need to verify the details before making further comments.
“I am not aware of the matter yet. We will discuss it with the relevant authorities and obtain more information,” he said when asked during a press conference at the Penang Skills Development Centre in Bayan Baru.
It was reported that the Department of Environment has rejected the EIA for a proposed project to rehabilitate the closed Jelutong landfill and reclaim land beside it.
The department’s online portal, which lists the status of EIA submissions, classified the project as “not approved”.
The RM1bil proposal involves excavating and rehabilitating the former landfill and reclaiming adjacent coastal land north of the Penang Bridge to temporarily store waste removed from the landfill before eventually transforming the area into a mixed-development project.
The 65ha site consists of 36ha of landfill and 29ha of newly reclaimed land next to the Karpal Singh Drive waterfront.
The project was first formalised in 2020 when the Penang Development Corporation signed an agreement with PLB Engineering Bhd to undertake the rehabilitation and reclamation works, which were expected to take four to five years.
However, no visible work has begun since the agreement was signed.
The plan has also faced strong opposition from residents and environmental groups, including those linked to the Protect Karpal Singh Drive Action Committee, who recently urged the chief minister not to grant the developer more time if the EIA was not approved.
Environmentalists have raised concerns that reclaiming land near the old Jelutong landfill could affect public health and damage the nearby Middle Bank, a shallow coastal area off Penang’s eastern shoreline known for its extensive seagrass beds and rich marine biodiversity.
The sanctuary spans about 10 square kilometres in the South Channel between the island and the mainland and is recognised as a marine Key Biodiversity Area supporting more than 400 species of flora and fauna.
Among them are endangered green turtles and dugongs that rely on seagrass as a primary food source, along with over 200 species of fish and invertebrates such as seahorses, flower crabs and the critically endangered horseshoe crab.
Previously, Chow had defended the project, saying reclamation was necessary to create sufficient space to safely carry out the landfill rehabilitation works while ensuring that the sensitive marine ecosystem at Middle Bank would not be affected.
He had also said the state would take steps to avoid encroaching on the sanctuary area and that public feedback during the EIA process would be taken into account by the authorities.
