BALING: Did the operator of a large Musang King farm on Gunung Inas violate environmental regulations?
Based on the Environment and Water Ministry's findings, the operator might have flouted several Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) guidelines.
This was revealed by a source familiar with the investigations who spoke to the New Straits Times on condition of anonymity.
The Musang King farm operator had never carried out an EIA study before the project commenced in 2018.
This was confirmed by Department of Environment director-general Wan Abdul Latiff Wan Jaffar during an interview with Berita Harian early this month.
He had said the department was probing the farm under the Environmental Quality Act 1974.
The source said he was made to understand that investigations were carried out based on the EIA that was approved for a timber latex clone (TLC) forest farm on the site, before it was taken over by the company that operates the Musang King durian farm.
He said based on the findings, the company had failed to comply with the EIA guidelines.
"The company was not supposed to build reservoirs at any location on Gunung Inas.
"Secondly, the company did not comply with the requirement on planting vegetation to cover exposed sites that were logged to make way for a forest farm project."
He said terraces built on the high slopes were suspected to be against the EIA guidelines.
"The company is suspected to have failed to build a proper sedimentation structure to prevent discharge from the farm from polluting river streams which are the source of water for surrounding villages."
The Detailed EIA report on the 5,000ha TLC project sighted by the NST stated that land for the proposed project site with slopes above 25 degrees and land at elevations greater than the mean sea level will not be converted into the rubber forest plantation, and the conversion will only be carried out on land with slopes less than 25 degrees and at elevations below 1000m above the mean sea level.
The report said areas with slopes at more than 25 degrees must be protected from any development and retained as buffer zones.
"Slopes steeper than 25 degrees must not be worked and should
be identified, stabilised and maintained. Terracing must be done mechanically along the contours in the planting area.
"Each terrace will be cut to a minimum width, which is one metre into the solid earth, and finished terraces should not be less than 14 feet wide, while conservation terraces will be cut to a minimum width of 10 feet," the report stated.
It said the forest farm project would create a "significant environmental impact".
The impact listed in the report include soil erosion and sediment pollution in the river, which would affect the gravity feed water supply systems or the community water in the study area.
The report said there was a grave risk if the sensitive area was disturbed, leaving the top soil bare with no crop cover, and if no conservation practices were employed.
"In this situation, the amount of eroded soil is very high, ranging from 3,874.68 to 22,003.34 ton/ha/year (tonnes per hectare per year).
"Potential soil loss per hectare per year without any mitigation measure is considered very high during the project construction period. This amount of soil loss is equal to the loss of 45cm to 195cm of topsoil per hectare annually."
The report outlined mitigation measures to minimise the project's environmental impact.
It was not immediately known if agencies had been monitoring the project site since it was converted into a Musang King farm.
The NST last month reported that 68 padi farmers in Kampung Iboi had quit planting the crop for six years after Sungai Kupang, which irrigates their padi fields, became heavily polluted.
On July 19, former menteri besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah said his administration gave the approval to ECK Development Sdn Bhd for a Musang King plantation on Gunung Inas.
He had said the approval for a large-scale durian plantation was meant to rehabilitate the site that had been left exposed due to logging by the previous administration since 2008.
He said ECK Development had acquired Aman Mega Sdn Bhd, the company appointed by his predecessor, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir.
It was learnt that Aman Mega was awarded a contract to develop forest farming by planting TLC in Compartment 8 of Gunung Inas.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor had said his administration had issued a stop-work order on the project in July 2020, several months after his appointment.
He said the order was issued after it was discovered that the company had breached the approval for forest farming by planting durian trees.
After massive floods hit 43 villages in the Kupang sub-district and three villagers in Kampung Iboi were killed on July 4, villagers had pleaded with the state government to shut down the Musang King farm.
Sanusi had said no to this as a multi-agency probe led by the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry found that the flood was a geological disaster and not caused by the Musang King farm.