CHIEF Minister Chow Kon Yeow has directed the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) to look into the rejection of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report by the Department of Environment (DoE) over the proposed Jelutong landfill rehabilitation and reclamation project.
Besides the DoE rejection and protests from residents nearby, as well as civil society, Chow's DAP comrade Jelutong Member of Parliament RSN Rayer is also supporting the current project design to be scrapped.
"The PDC would first study the contents of the rejection letter before proposing the next course of action. Let them look at the issue first,” Chow said.
Responding to questions about the proposed project, which has also drawn strong opposition from environmental groups, Chow said the project could still proceed under a different concept.
“But the landfill — I think residents are mainly talking about the reclamation. Even, I previously mentioned that if it were to be approved, it could be scaled down. However, the landfill itself still has to be dealt with. Let PDC study the matter first and make its recommendations,” he added.
Earlier reports stated that the DoE had rejected the EIA submission for the proposed rehabilitation of the closed Jelutong landfill and the reclamation of adjacent land.
According to the department’s online portal, which tracks the status of EIA submissions, the project has been classified as ‘not approved’.
The RM1 billion proposal involves excavating and rehabilitating the former landfill while reclaiming nearby coastal land north of the Penang Bridge.
The reclaimed area is intended to temporarily store waste removed from the landfill before the site is eventually redeveloped into a mixed-development project.
The 65-hectare site comprises 36 hectares of landfill and 29 hectares of newly reclaimed land next to the Karpal Singh Drive waterfront, which in itself is a reclaimed parcel by IJM Corporation Bhd. - March 12, 2026.
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