Coal-powered plant: Sabah group to take on BN

By Michael Kaung, FMT

The Sabah Environmental Protection Association (Sepa) is bracing for an all out battle to stop the government from railroading a proposed coal-fired power plant on the east coast of the state.

Among the options Sepa is considering is an injunction to prevent the government from pushing ahead with the 300-megawatt plant costing RM1.3 billion at a site in the now pristine Sahabat in Tunku, Lahad Datu.

“We with (the residents of) Sahabat will take their (governtment’s) consultant to court if there is any misleading information or cover-up about the effects of the power plant on the eco-system of the surrounding area,” Sepa president Wong Tack warned.

In a hard-hitting interview yesterday, Wong said the government and its agencies have turned a deaf ear  to pleas to protect the ecologically sensitive area and persist on building the plant despite protests from Sabahans.

“They already classified the area as environmentally insensitive long before a study was made so what are they talking about getting an EIA (environment impact assessment) done.

“This (EIA) is just eyewash and rhetoric. It’s nonsense. It’s to soften people up before announcing the decision to build the plant anyway. Why conduct a study when you have already made up your mind? Why need an EIA?

“It is misleading, unprofessional and unethical since the government and its agencies have already decided to build the plant…it’s all a political game,” he said.

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