THE Water, Land and Natural Resources Ministry does not have the authority to lift the moratorium on bauxite mining, said conservation group Sahabat Alam Malaysia.

Yesterday, Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Xavier Jayakumar announced the lifting of the moratorium from April 1, leading to concerns that the mining activities will have an unregulated and damaging impact on the environment.

In a statement today, the group chastised Jayakumar for coming to the decision without prior discussion with environmentalists, and said the issue did not fall under the jurisdiction of his ministry.

“Clearly, the minister has disregarded environmental concerns and has not consulted the affected local communities or environmental groups on the matter and has given in to the bauxite industry,” said SAM.

“We also wonder if he has consulted with the Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry, which is the relevant authority on environmental matters.”

The group said while the Water, Land and Natural Resources Ministry is responsible for regulating the mining industry, it does not have the jurisdiction and authority to regulate the environmental impacts of such mining activities, which is within the purview of the Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry, under the enforcement of the Environmental Quality Act 1974.

A moratorium was imposed in January 15, 2016, by ex-environment minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, and renewed every three months due to serious environmental effects that resulted from the mining activities and run-offs from unsecured stockpiles.

Environmentalists reported that contaminated water sources had caused roads, rivers and coastal waters to turn red, and severely impacted local communities.

SAM urged Jayakumar not to lift the ban on bauxite mining due to a “lack of clarity” on environmental measures being taken “to prevent a repeat of previous incidents of contamination and pollution”.

With the lifting of the moratorium, all activities on the mining and export of the ore can be resumed, although this time with a new standard operating procedure as well as tighter enforcement of the law.

“The moratorium will not be extended after March 31… I see that there is a strong demand for the bauxite industry in Pahang and the profit derived by the state is also enormous,” Jayakumar was quoted as saying by Bernama.

Reuters reported that Shanghai aluminium prices moved lower in early trade today as a result of the moratorium lift, which may potentially reduce costs in the aluminium supply chain for top producer China.

It was reported that the most traded April aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange slipped 0.4% to 13,395 yuan (RM8,085) a tonne as of 9.56am, just above the two-year low of 13,230 yuan struck last month.

Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.1% at US$1,855 (RM7,582) a tonne. – February 19, 2019.