Action against illegal sand dredging

Kota Kinabalu: The Land and Survey Department took swift action against an illegal sand dredging activity in Kg Manggis, Papar, following a Daily Express report, as a warning to all sand dredging operators in the State to abide by the regulations.State Director Safar Untong said an enforcement team seized machines, two dredgers and excavators at the site on Aug. 28.

"Our enforcement teams discovered three semi-mechanised suction dredgers or colloquially known as 'pontoons', some ancillary buildings and three excavators which are believed used for sand mining.

"At that time of the operation, no sand mining activities were on-going and only two dredgers were found afloat in the river. The other dredger was found on the processing site near the river bank and reported to be faulty.

"One excavator was also found to be faulty and the teams confiscated the functioning dredgers and excavators," he said, Wednesday.

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Safar said a police report was also lodged.

On Sept. 1, a survey team from the department went to the site to take necessary technical and spatial data to produce an in-situ survey plan of the area.

"An Investigation Paper (IP) will be opened once all necessary information has been obtained and the offender will be charged in accordance with the provisions of the Sabah Land Ordinance Cap 68.

"Since there is an affirmative statement from the Environment Protection Department (EPD) that the operators' Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report cannot be revalidated due to the area being designated as prohibited, the application for the renewal of the Temporary Occupational Lease (TOL) would not be considered.

"I am also reminding the existing TOL holders to adhere to the 'Aku Janji' pledge or the EIA conditions, and not to flout the TOL conditions because drastic and stringent actions would be taken against them like what happened in this case (in Papar)," he said.

There have been also complaints by Tuaran villagers that their lands along rivers have collapsed due to uncontrolled sand dredging operations with no action taken by the relevant authorities despite repeated complaints, forcing them to turn to the opposition for help to highlight their problem.

In the case of the Kg Manggis dredging, an EPD spokesman confirmed that the concerned dredging operator had flouted the terms and conditions in its licence.

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It was confirmed that the operator continued dredging despite the permit having expired two years ago. It was also confirmed that the dredging was so severe that it altered the course of the river.

Safar said the department had laid out stringent strategies to curb illegal sand mining throughout Sabah as part of the department's strategic and action plans.

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