Published on: Thursday, June 18, 2009 |
Kong said the supposedly illegal activity had resulted in an estimated 1.2 million metric tonnes of delicate corals being destroyed over the period.
He claimed the operators applied for a licence to extract sea sand apparently as a cover, explaining a large number of heavy vehicles and boats being used by them for such purposes.
He also said the operator had obtained valid licence to mine sea sand from the Mineral and Geosciences Department of Sabah in April 19, 2007 but claimed that no renewal of the permit was done after its expiry date.
The operation was initially reported by a source who knew about the activities to the Department of Environment in the district but no action was taken prompting the matter to be taken up by Kong.
He said the extracted corals were being processed into powdery form and sold as material for bone surgery, dentistry or pharmaceuticals marketed under a specific label.
Kong explained that he visited one such illegal site where some 1,000 metric tonnes of corals were stored but for unknown reason the stockpile was mysteriously removed two days after the visit.
"However, out of the thousands of metric tonnes of the mined corals only about 30 per cent of them could be processed," he said, adding that the processing was being done in a highly sophisticated factory in Balung.
Kong said the operator had also conducted their operation before moving to the present site at Kalumpang sea near Balung.
Meanwhile, the Sabah Environmental Protection Association (Sepa) expressed concern over the alleged illegal operation.
Its President, Wong Tack, said he had contacted the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment and was glad to learn that the Minister, Datuk Masidi Manjun had instructed a thorough investigation on the issue.
Sepa also received an assurance from Environmental Protection Department (EPD) Director, Yabi Yangkat, to get to the bottom of the issue.
Wong Tack in a statement here said the Minister had promised action if there is any proof of wrong-doing. Sepa, he said, would be monitoring the situation closely.
"Sepa would like to thank the Minister for his prompt action and also thank Datuk Kong for bringing the issue out. We want to see stern action taken if there is any violation of the laws or destruction of the marine environment.
"We also want to ensure there is no irregularity in the approval or licensing procedure," he said, adding that Sepa believed there was weakness in enforcement and monitoring of many marine activities in Sabah's coast.
"We are in a process of establishing a marine unit in Semporna. With that in place, we hope we can assist in improving the situation," he said.
