Protest as S'gor breaks ground on new incinerator project in Jeram
A group of residents from Rawang staged a protest in Jeram today outside the site of a new garbage incinerator project.
The Jaringan Rawang Tolak Insinerator (JRTI) had originally planned to hand over a memorandum of over 10,000 signatures to oppose the construction of the incinerator to Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari during the groundbreaking ceremony for the project...
A group of residents from Rawang staged a protest in Jeram today outside the site of a new garbage incinerator project.
The Jaringan Rawang Tolak Insinerator (JRTI) had originally planned to hand over a memorandum of over 10,000 signatures to oppose the construction of the incinerator to Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari during the groundbreaking ceremony for the project.
However, security barred them from entering the proposed project site, prompting the group to gather across the street instead.
There the group of ten, armed with banners expressing their opposition to the incinerator - and plans for a similar one in Batu Arang - stood in protest for three hours.
“While we residents in Rawang are still fighting to know more about the incinerator to be built in Batu Arang, suddenly there’s this groundbreaking ceremony,“ JRTI member Esther Woo told reporters.
“And we rakyat have no details about all these plans. Where is the transparency that the government has been advocating? Rakyat has no platform to know about all these plans that will have a big impact on our lives!” she angrily questioned.
Previously, the federal government had wanted to build a waste-to-energy incinerator in Kepong.
However, prolonged protests led to a decision to relocate the project, with Putrajaya reportedly eyeing to open one in Rawang.
Separately, the state government had also reportedly considered building an incinerator in Batu Arang, which is about 20km from Rawang.
Jeram, where the state government broke ground for another incinerator project, meanwhile, is about 30km from Batu Arang.
Woo questioned if the powers that be wanted to turn Selangor into a "rubbish corridor".
According to Woo, JRTI had sent a letter to Amirudin in September requesting a meeting but has not received a response.
‘We’re not in the 80’s’
When met after the groundbreaking ceremony, Amirudin told reporters: "We will meet in the office or my house later. I will invite them."
"Because I think the company has already met the NGOs to explain how the operation and so on. I think there is nothing to hide," he added.
He also said that the proposal to build an incinerator on Batu Arang is currently just a suggestion and further explanations will be provided in due course.
Earlier, in his speech, he attempted to placate the protesters and address their concerns.
"I understand some concerns by certain people surrounding the technology around waste-to-energy, but we are not living in the 1980’s.
"As with most things, technology has progressed. Some plants are able to convert solid waste to heat and steam which can generate electricity,” he explained.
"There is even an up-and-coming method surrounding 'dendro liquid energy', which is able to deploy a method promising close-to-zero emissions plants which can treat waste biologically,” he added.
He also cited data from the International Solid Waste Association that building incinerators in Malaysia can not only protect the environment but also create economic opportunities.
He believes the people must change their mindset and no longer view garbage as waste, but as an asset that can generate energy.
"We must change our perspective on waste; instead of trash, it should be viewed now as an asset to create energy to reduce our reliance on traditional coal or gas-fired power plants,” he advised.
He further stated that through waste-to-energy technology, the environment and landfills can be healed.
