FAQs on Sungai Selangor dam
Dr. Kua Kia SoongPublished: Feb 25, 2001 9:44 AM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 6:21 PM
What water tariff will dam builder Splash consortium be charging consumers?
Currently, Jabatan Bekalan Air Selangor is distributing treated water at an average price of 86 sen per cubic meter to household and industrial users. With the inflated cost of the whole project, the Splash consortium will be supplying treated water at the rate of at least RM1.30 sen per cubic metre. This is 51 per cent higher than the current price to consumers (The Sun, Nov 22, 1999). How is this justifiable?
Why was the project awarded without an open tender?
We know that there was at least one other contractor that put forward an alternative and lower tender and which did not involve the displacement of the Orang Asli at Pertak and Gerachi. Another bid involved a company which did not need to build any treatment plant, which would have saved consumers considerably. We would like to remind Gamuda shareholders (the key company in Splash) that Minister for Works Samy Vellu has recently pronounced that all projects should be openly tendered so that consumers will gain from the best and lowest-cost tender.
How will Splash finance the project?
Too many infrastructure projects have been awarded to companies which have not convinced shareholders and the public that they are capable of raising the money to start their projects. The Bakun dam was just one example - in the end, taxpayers had to compensate Ekran to the tune of almost RM1 billion and after the area had been thoroughly logged. Ekran's attempt at raising funds in the market was a flop. So how will the financing for Sungai Selangor dam project be solved? Will the government or EPF be providing a soft loan or is there going to be foreign assistance? Or will the consortium simply sub-contract the project to some foreign company and earn a commission? Consumers have a right to know because it will be costly for them.
How safe is the dam?
Why have the 45 conditions attached to the environmental impact assessment (EIA) not been released to the public? The safety of the dam and the protection of the environment surely relies on strict adherence to these conditions. Consumers have a responsibility to demand that these conditions be transparent. And where is the emergency response plan in the event of a dam failure? This is only mentioned in passing among the EIA conditions attached to the dam. Half the impounding area is on metasediments (soft, porous rocks) presenting high structural risk. The cost of treating this area will again raise the cost of the project. The Federal Department of Geology has said that it is preferable for the dam to be built on solid granite.
Will the dam solve the water crisis?
The Sungai Selangor dam cannot solve the water crisis in the country while there is no serious effort to implement a national water policy, incorporating water conservation campaigns; water demand management through pricing and fiscal measures; repiping the water network; cleaning up all rivers and preserving our natural water catchments. Yes, there are more responsible and rational ways to solve the water crisis in the Klang Valley!
In the short-term, efforts can be made to:
(a) Reduce the consumption of non-revenue water, of which 40 per cent of the total treated water supply is lost through bad management, leakage, industrial consumption, etc.
(b) Reduce demand by a pricing system that penalises wastage of water and gives incentives to those who save water. Industries which use a lot of water must pay more for the privilege without passing the cost to consumers.
(c) There is ample groundwater which has not been properly looked into.
We therefore call on the federal government to intervene and not to approve the concession for the Sungai Selangor dam until these questions of concern to water consumers in Selangor have been clarified, besides the priceless natural and cultural heritage that will be destroyed by the dam.
Dr KUA KIA SOONG is a spokesperson for SOS Selangor, a coalition of NGOs and individuals who are concerned about the social, environmental and economic costs of the proposed Sungai Selangor dam. For more information on SOS Selangor, visit their [#1]website[/#].
Currently, Jabatan Bekalan Air Selangor is distributing treated water at an average price of 86 sen per cubic meter to household and industrial users. With the inflated cost of the whole project, the Splash consortium will be supplying treated water at the rate of at least RM1.30 sen per cubic metre. This is 51 per cent higher than the current price to consumers (The Sun, Nov 22, 1999). How is this justifiable?
Why was the project awarded without an open tender?
We know that there was at least one other contractor that put forward an alternative and lower tender and which did not involve the displacement of the Orang Asli at Pertak and Gerachi. Another bid involved a company which did not need to build any treatment plant, which would have saved consumers considerably. We would like to remind Gamuda shareholders (the key company in Splash) that Minister for Works Samy Vellu has recently pronounced that all projects should be openly tendered so that consumers will gain from the best and lowest-cost tender.
How will Splash finance the project?
Too many infrastructure projects have been awarded to companies which have not convinced shareholders and the public that they are capable of raising the money to start their projects. The Bakun dam was just one example - in the end, taxpayers had to compensate Ekran to the tune of almost RM1 billion and after the area had been thoroughly logged. Ekran's attempt at raising funds in the market was a flop. So how will the financing for Sungai Selangor dam project be solved? Will the government or EPF be providing a soft loan or is there going to be foreign assistance? Or will the consortium simply sub-contract the project to some foreign company and earn a commission? Consumers have a right to know because it will be costly for them.
How safe is the dam?
Why have the 45 conditions attached to the environmental impact assessment (EIA) not been released to the public? The safety of the dam and the protection of the environment surely relies on strict adherence to these conditions. Consumers have a responsibility to demand that these conditions be transparent. And where is the emergency response plan in the event of a dam failure? This is only mentioned in passing among the EIA conditions attached to the dam. Half the impounding area is on metasediments (soft, porous rocks) presenting high structural risk. The cost of treating this area will again raise the cost of the project. The Federal Department of Geology has said that it is preferable for the dam to be built on solid granite.
Will the dam solve the water crisis?
The Sungai Selangor dam cannot solve the water crisis in the country while there is no serious effort to implement a national water policy, incorporating water conservation campaigns; water demand management through pricing and fiscal measures; repiping the water network; cleaning up all rivers and preserving our natural water catchments. Yes, there are more responsible and rational ways to solve the water crisis in the Klang Valley!
In the short-term, efforts can be made to:
(a) Reduce the consumption of non-revenue water, of which 40 per cent of the total treated water supply is lost through bad management, leakage, industrial consumption, etc.
(b) Reduce demand by a pricing system that penalises wastage of water and gives incentives to those who save water. Industries which use a lot of water must pay more for the privilege without passing the cost to consumers.
(c) There is ample groundwater which has not been properly looked into.
We therefore call on the federal government to intervene and not to approve the concession for the Sungai Selangor dam until these questions of concern to water consumers in Selangor have been clarified, besides the priceless natural and cultural heritage that will be destroyed by the dam.
Dr KUA KIA SOONG is a spokesperson for SOS Selangor, a coalition of NGOs and individuals who are concerned about the social, environmental and economic costs of the proposed Sungai Selangor dam. For more information on SOS Selangor, visit their [#1]website[/#].
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