India Environment Portal Knowledge for change

About us Contact us
downtoearth-subscribe

Browse by subjects

The dam sham

  • 30/01/1996

The dam sham THE idea of a dam across the Balui, a tributary of the Rajang river in the jungles of Sarawak, was first mooted a decade ago. It was given the green signal in 1983, cancelled by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad in 1990, and then revived three years later. Mohamad justified the change of heart by saying "it is a waste not to use the gifts of nature".

In line with Malaysia's privatisation policy, the project was given to a Sarawak-based private firm, Ekran Berhad. Just as people were not comfortable with the sudden decision to activate the project, there were fresh allegations of the dealings being shady because the company and its top brass were known to share close links with the Malaysian Prime Minister and Sarawak's chief minister. The Bakun Hydroelectric Corporation, which is to construct the dam, has awarded the contract for diverting the Balui river to South Korea's Dong-Ah Construction and Industrial Co.

The government on the other hand argues that the project will greatly benefit the state of Sarawak by enhancing the pace of development. It is also expected to create spin-off industries like tourism and thereby generate employment oppurtunities. The construction of the 205 m high dam is expected to be completed by the year 2002. The project shall generate 2,400 mw and have a lifespan of 50 years, transforming power-starved Malaysia into a regional power exporter.
Greens see red Environmentalists have been opposing the dam on various grounds. Apart from submerging 695 sq km of virgin rainforest, the dam will also inundate the farmlands and ancestral graves of 15 tribal longhouses - community dwelling homes. Roughly 9,400 tribals, mostly agriculturists, will be displaced. The government is expected to pay the displaced tribals compensation by early next year, but according to George Chan Hong Nam, minister for finance and public utilities, the amount of compensation has not yet been fixed.

Anxiety over their future looms large in the minds of the people. As Kuleh Gan, the wizened chief of the Long Belangan longhouse said, "Although the government says it would compensate us, sooner or later, the compensation given to us will finish. How then are the Penans to survive?" Others like Sararn Emu of Batu Kalo longhouse are worried about the resettlement plans. "I have six children. Will there be enough land for us to cultivate?"

In August, Ekran Berhad began work on a 'model resettled village' to allay the fears of those affected by the dam. An oil palm scheme is also being planned in the resettlement area. But it is not going to be easy to implement these grandiose plans. The tribals are hardly keen on the change in lifestyle that will necessarily follow. "Living on a plantation is like living in a prison," says a young woman from Long Geng longhouse.

The government has brushed aside all allegations reiterating that the only authorised body identifying those affected is the Bakun Development Committee (BDC) represented by all 60 longhouse communities in the Belaga district, including 15 in Bakun. In April this year, Sahabat Alam Malaysia (SAM), or Friends of the Earth Malaysia, organised a meeting of 40 representatives of communities that will be displaced by the Bakun Dam, to discuss what they could do to safeguard their rights. The outcome of the meeting was the formation of the Bakun Region Peoples' Committee (BRPC). According to Raymond Abin Bara, SAM's Belaga representative, the BRPC was formed because minority groups like the Penan and Ukit had lost confidence in the BDC.

Environmentalists have also raised doubts regarding the seismic safety of the dam. Concern over this aspect grew after an earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale hit Sabah in February, 1994. Last month, the manager of Bakun Management, a subsidiary of Ekran Berhad said the dam would be able to withstand tremors of upto 6.4 on the Richter scale.

The government has not taken such opposition lightly. A number Of NGOs across Malaysia, including SAM and the Consumers Association of Penang, have frequently roused the government's ire. industries minister Yaik accused SAM of being "bent upon giving Malaysia a bad image" and of being unduly influenced by "outsiders". "If they follow the dictates of the western environmental NGOS, then we have to stop living and not develop anything at all , he declared.

The media has not been spared either. In June, Mahathir Mohamad said the British Broadcasting Corporation was "congenitally incapable" of telling the truth. Despite increasing opposition to the dam, the government has allowed Ekran to go ahead with construction of the dam. In fact, Ekran has already performed the earth-breaking ceremony signifying the commencement of work on the dam.

The EIA rigmarole
As holders of the contract for construction, Ekran had commissioned the University of Malaysia, Sarawak, to conduct a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project. Simultaneously, the Cabinet announced that it had hit upon a new approach to avoid any delay in the implementation of the project. It decided to divide the EIA report into three stages - dam, reservoir and power transmission - and consider each of these in isolation. On March 27, the government approved the first part of the EIA and promptly on April 1, 1995, forest- clearing work began. Rajang The second part of the EIA report was approved by the Sarawak Natural Resources and Environment Board on December 9, 1995, The second part deals principally with the construction of the dam and its ancillary facilities.

Three Belaga longhouse residents - Kajing Tubek, Tahu Lijah and Saran Ilmu - had immediately filed a suit against the government and Ekran (which has been adjourned again, according to latest reports), seeking a declaration from the High Court that the project be scrapped unless it complies with the Environment Quality Act of 1974. Section 34A of the Act makes publication of a detailed EIA and public feedback mandatory.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian department of environment has washed its hands off Bakun with the passing of Sarawak's Natural Resources and Environment Order in August 1994. Under this order, ElAs are not required to be made public before being approved. Since issues relating to natural resources are under state purview in Malaysia, and Ekran had submitted the EIA report only after the Order came into force, Sarawak's laws applied in the matter of the Bakun EIA. Interestingly, the Environment Quality Act, a federal law, is applicable to every other project in Malaysia.

Related Content