Villagers urge govt to halt coal mining in Abok

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Jacob Imang

KUCHING: Natives affected by the coal mining activities in Abok, some 60km from Sri Aman, have once again appealed to the government to halt this activity which they claimed had wrecked havoc on their land and turned Sungai Sanjau into a dead river.

Jacob Imang, 73, of Kampung Abok, Pantu, told a press conference here yesterday that most of the native customary rights (NCR) land belonging to 18 Iban settlements in Abok, Selantik and Sungai Tenggang areas was unfit for cultivation due to five heavy coal mining operations in their areas.

In addition, their main water source — Sungai Sanjau — is now a dead river.

“The nearly 30 years of coal mining operations there has greatly affected the ecosystem. If you go to Abok today, you will see that all the land is useless.

“In addition, I was never compensated by the mining company despite the fact that half of my land has already been bulldozed off for mining activity purposes,” alleged Jacob, a farmer.

He said that before the coal was transferred to Kuching, it would be splashed and cleaned with water pumped from the river. This resulted in the poisonous coal debris seeping into the soil and gradually flowing back to same river.

On Sungai Sanjau, he said the irony was that although it is “already dead” its water still ended up in a water treatment plant after flowing through Pantu. This water treatment plant supplies water to between 6,000 and 8,000 people living in areas such as Abok, Lachau, Pantu, Sungai Tenggang.

“Sungai Sanjau is very dead, to the extent that there are no fish there. The water itself is considered unsafe for drinking. But when there is a heavy downpour, the river would appear clean, but only for a few days.”

Jacob, said this was not the first time he had aired the people’s grievances over this issue. He had lodged similar complaints in 1999 and 2000, but to no avail.

Asked about water supply for his own village, Jacob said he had built a dam costing RM23,000 to tap water from nearby mountains.

However, he lamented, three other longhouses still depended on Sungai Sunjau as their main source of water supply.

The coal mine in Abok came into the limelight recently when a tunnel fire claimed the lives of four Chinese nationals and injuring 10 others. Some 200 Chinese nationals are reported working in the mine while a few locals are employed as cooks and security personnel.

Jacob said the recent coal mine fire incident had raised much safety concerns among the people in Abok, and they want the government to investigate the incident thoroughly.

Meanwhile, Batu Lintang assemblyman See Chee How, who was also present at the press conference, stated the mine in question should be suspended until investigation is completed.

He added if the coal mine resumed activity, the relevant authority should at least ensure that such incidents would not recur in future. The environmental impact from the mining operations should also be mitigated.

“Abok is only a kilometre away from the mines. Environmental destructions and pollutions are clearly felt and seen, especially on the rivers, and streams.

“The government should make an effort to reassess whether the coal mine should be retained,” See said.