Bauxite Stockpiles have yet to be Cleared in Kuantan. Seriously

Bauxite Stockpiles have yet to be Cleared in Kuantan. Seriously

Two years after a moratorium on all bauxite mining was imposed in Pahang, local stockpiles have still not been cleared. Some 10 tons of bauxite still remains. In other words, the clear-up has been manifestly sluggish, even by local standards, to say the least. And so it goes. What seemed…

Officials ‘Who Aided’ Illegal Bauxite Mining are Nabbed in Pahang

Officials ‘Who Aided’ Illegal Bauxite Mining are Nabbed in Pahang

First came evidence that despite a year and a half-long moratorium on all bauxite mining in Pahang exports of the iron ore has been rising steadily for months. Now comes some welcome action by local authorities. To wit: the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has arrested a senior Customs officer and…

Anti-Graft Watchdog Seeks a Probe into Bauxite Fiasco

Anti-Graft Watchdog Seeks a Probe into Bauxite Fiasco

A lesson from the recent bauxite mining fiasco in Pahang, which has inflicted massive damage on the local environment, has been this: local politicians and authorities cannot be trusted to have nature’s and local people’s best interests in mind. They are supposed to be in charge, and yet when push…

Bauxite in Malaysia | Will the Ban Bring Relief?

Bauxite in Malaysia | Will the Ban Bring Relief?

Malaysia is now the world’s top producer of bauxite.  Go back just 18 months, and the country barely had a bauxite mining industry at all. The meteoric rise from zero to powerhouse producer of this necessary ingredient in aluminum production has come with fantastic environmental repercussions for Malaysia – problems that…

What has Bauxite done to Malaysia?

What has Bauxite done to Malaysia?

The Malaysian state of Pahang has been seeing its forests and farms leveled, its earth dug up, its waters polluted with vast amounts of mercury and arsenic, and its people suffer increasing cancer risks for over a year now.  The reason?  Bauxite mining.  The pace?  Frantic.  The government?  Unwilling to…

“Environmental” Mining Suspension really due to a Failing Bauxite Market?

“Environmental” Mining Suspension really due to a Failing Bauxite Market?

‘Rivers, Seas run red in Malaysia as Bauxite Exports Boom,’ reads a recent Reuters headline.  ‘Malaysia may Suspend Bauxite Mining,’ intones the Bangkok Post.  ‘Malaysia Seeks to Suspend Bauxite Mining after Environmental Scare,’ says Stuff.co.nz.  The heavy metal pollution and reddening of the ocean and rivers surrounding port town Kuantan have earned Malaysia’s…

Bauxite in Malaysia | It’s in the Water

Bauxite in Malaysia | It’s in the Water

It appears that some of Malaysian resident’s worst fears concerning the irresponsible bauxite mining sweeping parts of their country may have come true – traces of known bauxite contaminants have been discovered in treated water. A December analysis of treated water in and around bauxite mining hotspot Kuantan revealed the…

Bauxite in Malaysia | Monsoons could mean Mayhem

Bauxite in Malaysia | Monsoons could mean Mayhem

As the monsoon season approaches in Malaysia, a wave of anxiety larger than normal is washing over areas of Pahang used for bauxite mining.  Flooding is normally a big problem for the port city of Kuantan, but the many open-pit bauxite mines dug this year threaten to unleash torrents of…

Five Bauxite Lorries Burned by an Angry Malaysian Public

Five Bauxite Lorries Burned by an Angry Malaysian Public

It appears that Malaysian communities suffering under waves of pollution, industrial takeover and governmental inaction thanks to a surge of irresponsible bauxite mining have finally hit the breaking point.  Five lorries (trucks that blow through towns leaving large clouds of bauxite dust in their wake) have been set afire by…

Bauxite Mining already Tainting Malaysia’s Water Supply?

Bauxite Mining already Tainting Malaysia’s Water Supply?

Bauxite mining in Malaysia – and the heavy metal contamination it sews across land, air and water – is coming under increasing scrutiny as its industrial activity causes more and more public and environmental health problems. The latest in a series of worries including cancer risks, economic upset, groundwater corruption…