A REACH handout image showing hill clearing works for the eco-tourism project in Tringkap.
IPOH: Environmental impact assessment (EIA) approvals for several projects in Cameron Highlands should be reviewed, says an environmental non-governmental organisation.
Regional Environmental Awareness Cameron Highlands (REACH) president A. Dilip Martin said he believes that some of these projects were located in environmentally sensitive areas that are not suitable for development.
"I urge the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry to review these EIA approvals.
"They need to ensure that the projects adhere to the Highlands and Hillslopes Development Planning Guidelines.
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"There are some concerns about the approval in a sensitive area, potentially indicating a change in forest zoning to commercial usage," he told The Star on Monday (Feb 19).
"We are pleading to the (Pahang) government to place a moratorium on development in Cameron Highlands to prevent further disasters and loss of lives," he added.
In late January this year, five foreign workers were killed in a landslide at Batu 59, Blue Valley, at the highlands.
Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad had also earlier this year said that a special monitoring team will conduct regular checks and enforcement on development projects at the highlands.
The team, he said, would be headed by the Pahang Land and Mines Department to ensure any project subjected to EIA requirements will receive the report from the Department of Environment before approval.
