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Hearing Over Construction of Palm Oil Mill in Melalap
Hearing Over Construction of Palm Oil Mill in Melalap
04/01/2017 (Daily Express) - Residents here can raise their concerns over the construction of a palm oil mill in Melalap at a hearing planned this year.
District Officer Madiyem Layappan said the hearing chaired by him will give the opportunity for those affected by the construction of the mill to raise their fears directly to the developer of the Sawit Tanel Palm Oil Mill.
"In the hearing, officials from the Economy Planning Unit, Environment Department and several more agencies will also be attending and any decision or pre-requisites made during the hearing will be recorded by the district office," he said.
Concerns over the mill went viral on the social media recently, leading to a briefing held by the mill operator over its development and respond to environmental concerns raised by residents on December 26.
Madiyem believed the recent briefing may have resolved some of the negative perceptions against the operator who had previously saw its engineer noting the mill project already obtained Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval, although it has not.
A leader of the mill opposing group, Jimmy Jawatah, said they were willing to raise their arguments and grounds of objections to the mill at any given time to the hearing committee.
"We want our grounds for opposition seriously by the Government although assurance had been given by the operator that the mill will be environmentally friendly.
"We also want the Government to know that we are also opposing the gazettement of Melalap sub-district as an industrial zone," he said.
Meanwhile, Mosolog Village Chief Jumaidi Maridi said residents here are not against development but residents called for an absolute guarantee that no pollution will happen. Lulua Mosolog Village Village Security and Development Chairman Adnan Matahar feared if one mill is allowed in Melalap, more will follow suit later until it goes beyond control and pollution become inevitable.
District Officer Madiyem Layappan said the hearing chaired by him will give the opportunity for those affected by the construction of the mill to raise their fears directly to the developer of the Sawit Tanel Palm Oil Mill.
"In the hearing, officials from the Economy Planning Unit, Environment Department and several more agencies will also be attending and any decision or pre-requisites made during the hearing will be recorded by the district office," he said.
Concerns over the mill went viral on the social media recently, leading to a briefing held by the mill operator over its development and respond to environmental concerns raised by residents on December 26.
Madiyem believed the recent briefing may have resolved some of the negative perceptions against the operator who had previously saw its engineer noting the mill project already obtained Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval, although it has not.
A leader of the mill opposing group, Jimmy Jawatah, said they were willing to raise their arguments and grounds of objections to the mill at any given time to the hearing committee.
"We want our grounds for opposition seriously by the Government although assurance had been given by the operator that the mill will be environmentally friendly.
"We also want the Government to know that we are also opposing the gazettement of Melalap sub-district as an industrial zone," he said.
Meanwhile, Mosolog Village Chief Jumaidi Maridi said residents here are not against development but residents called for an absolute guarantee that no pollution will happen. Lulua Mosolog Village Village Security and Development Chairman Adnan Matahar feared if one mill is allowed in Melalap, more will follow suit later until it goes beyond control and pollution become inevitable.