Making the most of the bauxite moratorium – Jon Connars

On January 15, the Malaysian government imposed a three-month moratorium on bauxite mining, amid growing concern over the environmental impact of this largely unregulated industry.

At the epicentre of the “bauxite rush” is the state of Pahang, which accounts for more than 70% of the country’s estimated 109.1 million tonnes of bauxite reserves.

That the government has intercepted this crisis can only be applauded.

Yet to many, this is long overdue. For the frenzy of bauxite mining taking place has quite clearly been unsustainable for some time.

Production has increased from just over 200,000 tonnes in2013 to over 20 million tonnes last year.

In 2015, Malaysian bauxite imports to China increased by 700% from 2014 figures, stepping into the seat vacated by Indonesia and becoming China’s number one bauxite supplier.

Most of the increase came from illegal mines, which proliferated across the country with stark disdain for environmental rules.

This level of activity cannot be sustained in the long term. Nor should it be, as the environmental impact has been nothing short of catastrophic, with the red mud generated by the mining leaving the once green pastures looking battered and bloodied as Malaysia’s resources are plundered.

This isn’t just about landscapes being spoiled, however. As well as staining the seas and rivers red, the mud produced, and not safely disposed off, by the bauxite mines poisons them with toxic heavy metals.

In August it was discovered that the levels of aluminium, mercury, arsenic and manganese in one river were so high that it was unsuitable for consumption, irrigation or recreation.

Above ground, the red dust that circulates around the mines and is then transported by trucks travelling along the once quiet country roads, causes severe respiratory distress for residents and has even forced some local businesses to close.

Even the Crown Princess, Tuanku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah, who has a home in Pahang’s Pantai Balok resort, has complained on her Instagram account that she could no longer collect cockles in the region’s waters.

She urged her countrymen to “Fight people, fight.”

Her compatriots in the corridors of power certainly had no appetite to get into the ring with the mining industry, however, with the Pahang Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob complaining that his state lacked the manpower it needed to tackle the crisis.

“It is not that we procrastinated or delayed (enforcement), but it was just beyond our capacity,” he said in an interview with the New Straits Times.

So far, so ineffectual.

This feebleness from the local authorities was exacerbated by the fact that, as ever, where there’s money to be made, it brings in its wake crime and corruption.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has concluded that there were “elements of corruption” in the burgeoning industry and has already brought charges against four Pahang lands and mines officers for alleged bribery.

MACC also found that there were more than 200 illegal miners operating in Pahang.

However, it was not just the illegal miners that caused problems. Lax regulations also meant that it was possible to stay just on the right side of the law in practice, even when violating it in spirit.

In Malaysia, environmental impact assessments are only required on plots larger than 250 hectares, yet much of the bauxite being mined is on land currently owned by smallholders cultivating palm oil, vegetables and orchards.

All the mining companies needed to do was offer the owners of these smallholdings enticing sums in order to allow their land to be mined and work could commence, neatly sidestepping the spectre of government oversight.

Given the myriad problems caused by bauxite production, the government’s call for the miners to lay down their drills is much needed.

But this three-month cessation period must be used wisely. Put crudely, the bauxite genie is out the bottle now, and the government cannot stuff it back in.

Indeed, nor should it want to. Managed well, bauxite mining could provide income for the state and jobs for the population, a welcome addition to Malaysia’s slowing economy.

To date, too much has happened too soon, and the government has been unable to either mitigate the negative parts of bauxite mining or truly maximise the benefits for the nation.

Indeed, PKR alleged that Malaysia has been deprived of more than RM180 million because the Royal Customs Department failed to impose export duty on bauxite.

This is money that could of course be used to mitigate the environment impact of the mining and to fund the regulation and policing that the industry so clearly needs.

It is matters such as these that the government should consider in this three-month hiatus. It must also discuss how best to tackle illegal mining businesses and the corrupt officials who supported them.

It must take advice on what levels of mining the land and the environment can sustainably support and how they are going to regulate these factors.

It also needs to consider how it can ensure that, as Malaysia bears the costs of the mining, it also enjoys the majority of the profits.

Reconciling the competing interests of development, economic growth and environmental standards will not be easy, but it is essential if all Malaysians, and not just a privileged or unscrupulous few, are to truly benefit from the natural resources beneath their feet. – February 4, 2016.

* Jon Connars reads The Malaysian Insider.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.