GEORGE TOWN: Two leading non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have urged the Penang government to respect and comply with the legal process and not proceed with the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project pending the filing of an appeal.
The Consumers' Association of Penang (CAP) and Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM) said that by proceeding with the project, the state government implies that the legal challenge could be disregarded and has no merit.
An appeal had been filed with the Appeals Board to challenge the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)'s approval by the Department of Environment (DOE), embodied in the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (EQA).
CAP president Mohideen Abdul Kader and Sahabat Alam Malaysia president Meenakshi Raman said by signing the agreement with delivery partners for the PTMP project; and Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow's statement yesterday that the PSR project will commence in February next year before the appeal is heard, the state government is treating with contempt the rights given by law to citizens.
They said the state government must remember this is a nation based on the rule of law.
"We would like to remind the state government that sometime in July last year, representatives of fishermen from Sungai Batu in Teluk Kumbar, led by Zakaria Ismail, filed an appeal under the EQA, which allowed parties which are aggrieved by the decision of the DOE in approving the EIA to take the matter up with the Appeals Board set up under the Act.
"A hearing is pending in the Appeals Board against the decision of the then DOE director-general, granting conditional approval of the project's EIA.
"Until the appeal is concluded and the legal issues resolved, the Penang government must respect the law and not proceed with the PSR project.
"Otherwise, the law and the appeal process would be made a mockery of," they said in a joint statement today.
The Penang government, they said, appears to be bent on proceeding with the PSR project, without any regard for the legal challenge by the fishing community, and the objections to the project by civil society organisations based on sound grounds.
"As such, we reiterate our call for the state government to respect and comply with the legal process and not proceed as if the legal challenge can be disregarded and has no merit, as this is for the Appeals Board under the EQA to determine," they added.
The Sungai Batu fishermen have challenged the appeal on various grounds, including that the DOE's approval of the EIA was premature as it was not complete and had not taken into account the recommendations of the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA).
Among the recommendations of the MOA are that the state government conduct further studies on the impact of dredging and reclamation of the project on the white prawn population; and the impact of noise on fish due to these activities.
It also recommended that the state gazette a fishery conservation zone along the coastline from Pulau Betong to Teluk Bahang, as well as to gazette the Middle Bank as fisheries protected area.
Another grounds for appeal is that the DOE's condition on the state to ensure offset programmes would be in place to mitigate losses to fishing communities is not sufficient, as they do not have the ability to replace the function of the natural habitats that will be destroyed by the reclamation project.
Another issue is that there has been no consideration as to how the PSR project undermines Malaysia's obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Sustainable Development Goals.
"These are substantial grounds and the matter could be litigated right up to the Federal Court.
"If the fisher folk succeed in their challenge, then the EIA approval would not be valid, and the project cannot proceed without a valid approval under the law.
"Is the government trying to create facts on the ground in the hope of influencing the Appeal Board in deciding the challenge?" they asked.
Chow recent ly signed the master agreement with the
project delivery partner, SRS Consortium, for the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).
SRS Consortium will have to prepare and present the financial architecture plan for the PTMP to the Penang government within a month.
The three main components of the RM46 billion PTMP are the Bayan Lepas Light Rail Transit (BL LRT), the Pan Island Link (PIL1 and PIL2A) highways, and the PSR project.
During the signing ceremony, Chow said that the PSR project had captured the interest of industrial players.
The PSR is a reclamation project that aims to create islands totalling about 4,500 acres, off the southern coast of Penang island.