Request for no expansion to Pitas shrimp farm
Published on: Thursday, June 21, 2018
Kota Kinabalu: Deputy Chief Minister cum Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Christina Liew said she will bring to the attention of the State Government the grievances of Gabungan Enam Kampung affected by the ongoing Shrimp Aquaculture Project at Sungai Telaga, Pitas.She said the villagers are willing to forgo their claim to the 2,300 acres of mangrove swamps which were cleared in the absence of a firm Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval in 2013, provided the remaining area of 1,000 acres is left untouched by the company concerned."I will convey the people's request to the State Government for consideration.
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We (Ministry) value the opinions of environmentalists. We always believe that environmental values should not be compromised in the development sector."I am paying special attention to this matter as I know the villagers have been very unhappy about the shrimp aquaculture project, and had staged a protest in recent years," she told a press conference, Wednesday, after receiving a courtesy call from the President of Sabah Environmental Protection Association (Sepa), Dr Lanash Thanda, and Treasurer, Deric Chiew. The duo presented the Minister a background paper prepared by Sepa on the Telaga issue.Liew, who had previously acted for the villagers in her capacity as a lawyer, lamented that the shrimp culture has upset the ecology of the area in question and adversely affected the people's livelihood. "We will channel to the State Government their request for no expansion to the shrimp farm.
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Given the utter destruction (2,300 acres), we need to know whether the company is going ahead with the remaining 1,000 acres."Asked whether the Government has the right to stop Sunlight Inno Seafood from continuing with its business operation, she said it is a joint venture project with Yayasan Sabah. Initially, the project was a controversial one as the company started clearing the mangrove swamps in 2013 without an EIA approval.
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Urged by Liew to have Sepa's voice heard, Dr Lanash shared that the villagers have also made a request for no discharge of effluent into the Telaga River. "Since 2013, we have been working with the six kampungs that have been badly hit by the mass clearance of mangroves (2,300 acres). The main issue is that these communities are hardcore poor and rely heavily on these mangroves for food."The Ministry's Permanent Secretary, Datu Rosmadi Datu Sulai, said the Minister supports the villagers' request that the remaining 1,000 acres be left untouched."Basically, environmental issues are on the Minister's agenda. Our Ministry is all for protection of the environment. We will continue to monitor the project to ensure the company complies with all the EIA provisions," he added.Meanwhile, Deputy Director of the Environmental Protection Department (EPD), Vitalis Moduying, reported that the company was compounded RM30,000 on Aug 1, 2013 for having cleared the mangrove swamps without an EIA approval. This followed an inspection by the department upon receiving a report from Sepa. Dr Lanash and her team have been visiting the villagers regularly.Subsequently, there was a stop work order on Dec 23, 2013 when the company was found to have continued clearing the mangroves in a certain area. A second stop work order was issued later, according to Moduying.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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