Land clearing in Selangor State Park for ECRL had permit: state exco

SHAH ALAM – Land clearing in the Selangor State Park for part of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project received a use permit from the state Forestry Department, Selangor exco Hee Loy Sian said.

Bernama quoted him as saying that the department had issued a use permit in July 2022 for the implementation of the project in the permanent forest reserve area.

The implementation of ECRL had been approved by the cabinet on September 2, 2021, and agreed to by the 19th National Physical Planning Council (MPFN) on October 21 of the same year, said Hee who is state Tourism, Environment, Green Technology and Orang Asli Affairs Committee chairman.

He added that the Selangor government, through a meeting on November 24, 2021, also agreed with the proposed amendment to the original route of Section C, covering areas from Bentong-Gombak-Serendah-Port Klang.

“For the record, the approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Report for Section C2 (Gombak-Serendah-Port Klang) was obtained by Malaysia Rail Link (MRL) on November 30, 2021,” he said according to Bernama.

Hee said this in response to claims by non-governmental organisation Rimba Disclosure that it found land-clearing activities in four areas in the Selangor State Park.

Rimba Disclosure also claimed that the EIA for Section C2 had not yet been approved.

Hee today said the Selangor government is of the opinion that the ECRL project should be implemented as it will contribute to the well-being of the community and boost the country’s economic growth.

“Until now, the implementation of the ECRL project in the Selangor State Park area has always been controlled so that it complies with the stipulated rules and conditions,” he said.

Hee’s statement today appears different from Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari’s yesterday, that the land clearing works in the state’s forest reserves were done “without approval”.

While Amirudin confirmed that China Communications Construction Company (M) Sdn Bhd (CCCC) was indeed behind the deforestation activities to make way for the 665km-long ECRL project, Amirudin said CCCC had started work without approval.

He added that “enforcement action” had been taken in December 2022.

“There was a road permit issued to CCCC for the purpose of constructing a road towards…entry facilities for the ECRL project that spans 2.3km (1.8ha),” he was reported as saying by Malay Mail yesterday.

“The CCCC had started work without approval and enforcement action had been taken in December 2022,” he was quoted as saying.

The Vibes reported environmental watchdog group Rimba Disclosure Project raising the alarm over the land clearing. 

A spokesman for CCCC subsequently told The Vibes that the company had obtained all necessary approvals and permits from the relevant authorities to proceed with the project.

On December 21, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the overall cost to complete the ECRL project is now RM74.96 billion, which is RM11.01 billion lower than originally set.

He said that the government will proceed with the project to construct the 665km-long rail system from Kota Baru in Kelantan to Port Klang in Selangor.

The original total development cost of the project when it was launched in 2017 amounted to RM85.97 billion. – The Vibes, January 4, 2023