Palm | Kelapa Sawit

Hariz Mohd New Straits Times 14 Feb 13;

LOJING PROJECT: Developers carry out projects without EIA reports

KUALA LUMPUR: FOURTEEN errant developers have so far been taken to court for flouting environmental rules in Lojing, Kelantan.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said the developers -- nine of whom had carried out projects without submitting Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports -- had to be taken to task for damaging the environment.

He said the environment authorities found that massive damage had been done to the rich flora and fauna in the Lojing area because of unlawful land development work.

"Of the 14 cases, nine developers had failed to come up with EIA reports while the other five had EIA reports, but had failed to follow its mitigation plans.

"We are monitoring the situation and will not hesitate to take action against any other developer who fails to adhere to the law," he told the New Straits Times yesterday.

Uggah was commenting on rampant land clearing activities in Lojing, which neighbours the famous tourism spot of Cameron Highlands in Pahang.

The minister said approval of any land development project rested with the state government.

He said while projects on land, with an area of 50ha and above, required an EIA, which is enforced by the Environment Department, projects on smaller land areas were under the local authorities.

"EIA serves as a guideline to see the impact of a proposed land development project on the environment, thus enabling the authorities to come up with a mitigation plan.

"This way, we can ensure that the environment is not damaged or polluted. But, for works on areas smaller than 50ha, the local authorities are in charge of monitoring the projects and ensuring that they don't damage the environment."

Last week, the NST reported rampant jungle clearing, hill cutting and river pollution covering massive areas had been carried out. An aerial survey revealed that huge swathes of highland had been stripped bare of trees, with signs of recent clearings.