Science proves anti-Lynas groundwater claims are false

LETTER | Recent groundwater monitoring conducted by the government proves there is no groundwater contamination caused by Lynas Malaysia’s operations.

Lynas Malaysia welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Water, Land and Natural Resources, Minister Dr Xavier Jayakumar who said: “The latest tests that were done around the Lynas area gave us negative readings of heavy metals."

This was also confirmed by the MESTECC Deputy Secretary-General (Climate Change), Nagulendran Kangayatkarasu, who said: “We are continuously monitoring and it’s not coming from Lynas. We believe it was just a one-off incident.”

These statements are consistent with Lynas Malaysia’s own groundwater monitoring and analysis.

We are disappointed that anti-Lynas activists have used misleading and false information about groundwater in an attempt to create fear in our local communities.

The safety of our people, our communities and the environment is our priority and we are committed to providing accurate and scientific information about our operations.

The Pakatan Harapan government’s Executive Review Committee report in December 2018 did not suggest that any groundwater contamination was due to Lynas Malaysia. 

In addition, the report found that our operations are low risk and compliant with relevant regulations. Also, residue storage facilities are operated in a proper manner.

Regulatory decisions on Lynas must be based on science, not on myth.

ISMAIL BAHARI is GM, Radiation Safety, Regulations & Compliance of Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd

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