Environmentalists sceptical of move to ban REE exports

Free Malaysia Today

The real concern is around the potential social and environmental impact resulting from mining activities, says Sahabat Alam Malaysia.  Read More: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2023/09/13/environmentalists-sceptical-of-move-to-ban-ree-exports/  Laporan Lanjut: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/bahasa/tempatan/2023/09/13/aktivis-alam-sekitar-ragui-langkah-larang-eksport-ree/  Free Malaysia Today is an independent, bi-lingual news portal with a focus on Malaysian current affairs.    Subscribe to our channel - http://bit.ly/2Qo08ry   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check us out at https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com Follow FMT on Facebook: http://bit.ly/2Rn6xEV Follow FMT on Dailymotion: https://bit.ly/2WGITHM Follow FMT on Twitter: http://bit.ly/2OCwH8a  Follow FMT on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2OKJbc6 Follow FMT on TikTok : https://bit.ly/3cpbWKK Follow FMT Telegram - https://bit.ly/2VUfOrv Follow FMT LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3B1e8lN Follow FMT Lifestyle on Instagram: https://bit.ly/39dBDbe ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Download FMT News App: Google Play – http://bit.ly/2YSuV46 App Store – https://apple.co/2HNH7gZ Huawei AppGallery - https://bit.ly/2D2OpNP  #FMTNews #REE #Mining #Ban #Environmentalist #Government

Transcript

00:00 Much of these wells come with radioactive material in them.

00:05 So we are not convinced that it's non-radioactive and we think that this has to be interrogated

00:12 and to be substantiated because we don't believe that the claim is correct.

00:19 Environmentalists are sceptical over the government's move to ban the export of rare earth elements,

00:24 or REE.

00:25 The ban was announced by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in an effort to stop the exploitation

00:30 loss of resources and guarantee maximum returns for the country.

00:35 He also announced plans to tap into non-radioactive rare earth elements, or NRRE, as a new revenue

00:41 stream.

00:42 Meenakshi Rahman, President of Sahabat Ala Malaysia, said she is not convinced by this

00:46 move as it will still generate toxic waste.

00:50 She said data from the International Renewable Energy Agency show that producing one ton

00:55 of NRREs will generate 2,000 tonnes of toxic waste.

01:00 This does not include the 75 cubic metres of waste water and one tonne of radioactive

01:04 waste the production will generate.

01:07 For us, the root problem itself is the fundamentals of rare earth extraction and its impacts.

01:18 Now it's good that the government has announced that it is not for export because that would

01:22 have even caused a bigger stress on the resources.

01:28 Meanwhile, Kazanah Ala Malaysia President Damien Tanamdivian said the government must

01:32 actively seek and implement extraction methods that will minimise environmental damage.

01:37 The government will not stop attempts for exploration and mining of REEs because it

01:44 has big potential to provide revenue for the government.

01:49 It should be done on a very sustainable and eco-friendly method.

01:56 The government should spend time on developing and testing such methods.

02:02 Natasha Biust, FMT News.

02:04 (gentle music)

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Transcript

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