Ryan Albrey, an Australian from Perth, explains in Bahasa Malaysia, why Malaysians should reject this project, but also the government that approved this project.
The Lynas project is interesting, not because it failed to follow standard procedures in Malaysia in getting its investment approved (that is normal) but who is “rumoured” to be behind it.
I wonder what the Sultan of Pahang thinks about this project?
One thing is for sure, Australians and Malaysians are getting up close and personal.
Update (27 February 2012) – Despite worries about the plant’s safety, the Prime Minister of Malaysia assures that the Lynas plant is “factually and scientifically” safe.
20 responses so far ↓
1 Eddy Blaxell // Feb 26, 2012 at 9:36 pm
This is fabulous. If Australians are serious about communicating with Asia, this is the way to do it.
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2 R. N. England // Feb 27, 2012 at 5:42 pm
The rare earth ore from Mount Weld in Western Australia which Lynas proposes to process in Malaysia contains less radioactive material than most rare earth deposits. It is very likely to be exploited because of increasing demand, because the associated hazard can be kept relatively low, and because it is a supply that is not controlled by China. The hazards of rare earth production cannot be reduced to zero, but this applies to production of any kind. The question is whether production significantly adds to the hazards people face in everyday life. You cannot answer this question without high-level, scientific studies. If science is not respected, then whether or not the project goes ahead will be decided by a “debate” between greedy stake-holders and governments with an eye on short-term economic benefits on one side, and innumerate crack-pots and rabble-rousers on the other.
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3 Greg Lopez // Feb 27, 2012 at 7:28 pm
An economic analysis of the Lynas project in Malaysia:
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4 John // Feb 28, 2012 at 2:06 am
This guy is an ignorant idiot.
The plant DID get Australian approval.
The problem is, the mine is in the middle of a desert; where would they get the water & power, let alone the many chemicals, they need to process this material, which is about as radioactive as granite.
Yes, even the thorium concentrate fails to qualify as low level radioactive waste on the IAEA cassification..
Yes, the tax break is a major incentive to locate the plant in Gebeng, as is plenty of water, cheap power and local chemical supplies.
The upside for Malaysia is (in part) the downstream industry such as the Seimens joint venture manufacturing magnets (used in wind farms; renewable energy).
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5 Ryan Albrey // Feb 29, 2012 at 2:36 am
Fantastic to have you guys share my video. The video you have embedded in your blog post is a copy of my original video. All my original videos can be found on my Youtube channel which is http://www.youtube.com/existangst
R. N. England writes: “The hazards of rare earth production cannot be reduced to zero, but this applies to production of any kind.”
I agree.
Perhaps I should start by saying that I have no beef with the Rare Earths Industry and do not pretend that these important metals should be just left in the ground. The Rare Earths that sit beneath Mt Weld are going to be dug up and processed somewhere. The only question is where and under what conditions.
As R.N. England notes it is naive to imagine that the dangers from heavy industrial processes can be reduced to nil. However Lynas haven’t even made an effort to ensure that the dangers are reduced to even a reasonable level. Rather than build their factory in Australia they have chosen to build in Malaysia where the official corruption is rampant. It is unlikely that if Lynas ever run afoul of Malaysian safety standards they wont be asked for a bribe to make everything better. Whistle blower Engineers that worked on the project told the New York Times of a litany of dangerous construction practices common on the Lynas site when the factory was being built.
So that is my first problem. Hungry to maximize profits for their investors, Lynas have not tried hard enough to bring negative externalities down to the lowest possible level.
Secondly and perhaps even more importantly is that locals have been offered NOTHING in return for the risk they will be exposed to when the Lynas factory starts up. Nothing.
Arafura resources are currently planning a Rare Earths processing plant in Whyalla. They are in the middle of a long drawn out consultation process with the community there in South Australia. Making sure that the community gets just reward for having a Rare Earths Processing plant next door.
Lynas are in Malaysia because they want to avoid having to give anything at all to the local community. Far cheaper to give to the handful of Government figures that make decisions.
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6 K. Howell // Mar 1, 2012 at 2:08 pm
Ryan Albrey writes; ‘Far cheaper to give to the handful of Government figures that make decisions’
This is implying that Lynas has paid off figure heads.
Do you have any evidence of this?
Ryan Albrey also quotes “because it failed to follow standard procedures in Malaysia in getting its investment approved ”
Lynas had followed every single rule in the Malaysian book, else why would the project be approved at all?
Lynas is in continueous discussions with the locals, the obstacle is that Anti-Lynas groups; that do not live near the plant are out there everyday protesting a cause that cannot be proved unless something actually goes horribly wrong.
The real locals are getting brushed off by the anti-Lynas groups who claim to speak on their behalf.
There are hazards associated with Rare Earth’s, but the dangers have been proven to be far less than what is been told to the locals by the Anti-Lynas protestors. This was not studies by Malaysians alone.
This study was completed by a panel of internation experts and regulartory associations, or is Ryan saying these experts were also “paid off” ?
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7 Ryan Albrey // Mar 1, 2012 at 5:58 pm
Dear K Howell,
If you are going to put my quotes in quotation marks please make sure that they are indeed my quotes.
I never said “because it failed to follow standard procedures in Malaysia in getting its investment approved ”.
In fact quite the opposite. The Malaysian Government has worked quite hand in glove with Lynas Corp. Government officials have from time to time been confused with Lynas Spokespeople and Lynas have amazed many with their ability to never put so much as a foot wrong with the Malaysian Government.
Which brings me to an important part of my opposition to this plant. I reserve the greater part of my opprobrium not for Lynas but for the Malaysian Government. I’m not accusing Lynas of failing to play by the rules or cheating. I’m saying the rules are themselves corrupt.
I am quick to state that I have no proof Lynas have paid any bribes to the Malaysian Government. I do however feel ok saying that Lynas probably paid bribes to Malaysian Government figures.
What I can say is that Malaysia sits at number 60 on the Corruption Perceptions Index published by Transparency International. Australia sits at number 8. So I think right there we have the answer, or at least part it, as to why it is so much more profitable for Lynas to operate in Malaysia and not in Australia. In its corrupt practices, Malaysia finds a competitive advantage over Australia.
The other thing I feel fairly comfortable saying is that the Malaysian Government is not filled with kindly old men who live in wooden Kampung houses, more interested in prayer 5 times a day than they are in money. No, quite the contrary, their avarice seems to know no bounds.
The other thing I feel quite comfortable saying is that for 12 years Lynas will give NOTHING to Malaysia that we know of. Publicly, the Malaysian Government have asked Lynas for NOTHING. No taxes, no export quotas, nothing. Lynas are to become the first supply of Rare Earths outside of China in over a decade and the Malaysian Government, not fools by any stretch of the imagination, ask for nothing in return? So with so little being asked from Lynas in an OFFICIAL sense, we know there must have been an awful lot asked for in an UNOFFICIAL sense. You can have your choice. The Malaysian Government are either stupid to the point of being unfit to govern or they are Corrupt to the point of being unfit to govern.
You put the facts together and see if you wouldn’t recommend knocking Malaysia a few rungs further down on that Corruption Perceptions Index.
K Howell mentions that many of the anti-Lynas folk are not from Kuantan. I would say that the protests held at the weekend probably confirm this. In Penang, KL, Ipoh, Sabah and indeed in Kuantan there were protests that each attracted thousands of people. I dare say the people in the rest of Malaysia have probably reached the conclusion that if the Government is willing to do this to Kuantan they will be just as willing to do it elsewhere in Malaysia. Finally the “its not in my backyard so I don’t care” attitude has reached its used by date.
It K Howell trolling me? He/she points out that I am protesting for a cause that cannot be proven until something goes horribly wrong. Yes stopping the thing before something goes horribly wrong is exactly the idea. No use saying “I told you so” when kids are dying of cancer.
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8 K. Howell // Mar 2, 2012 at 6:10 pm
I would like to point out that if the project is cancelled, Lynas will not become the Worlds first in over a decade. And it will serve to be a guarantee that never in future any Rare Earth oxides will be produced in Malaysia.
Malaysia will rediculed for its decision and may never see a $(or RM) ever again from OS investors.
Is this the bright future Malaysia wants to establish through this campagne?
Assuming the Malaysian Government is corrupt. Hence the speedy unquestioned, unsolicited approvals may sure apply.
However the people that had given the “OK” to Lynas were not only Malaysian Politicians and figure heads.
Malaysia has seen the malpractices of Asian Rare Earths, to which IAEA were called to assess.
IAEA were also called into assess LAMP as well and was given the “OK”
You would have to question, would IAEA to guarantee the safety of LAMP if it were unsafe?
Given that Lynas has submitted all requirements and having these approved by not only (corrupt) Malaysian officials but by the International regulatory body should not be discounted.
Or undoubtably assume IAEA are also corrupt.
The STOP LYNAS campagne is political propaganda aimed at the running government, inciting racism and hatred toward Australians.
If anything needs to be stopped it should be this movement.
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9 Zheng-Guo, Ma // Mar 3, 2012 at 4:33 pm
I’m Malaysian and I really thanks for whom support us from Australia.
We hate Lynas. For example, you’ll be getting angry if someone throw rubbish with radiator to your home.
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10 Neptunian // Mar 4, 2012 at 2:57 am
K Howell #7
“Assuming the Malaysian Government is corrupt. Hence the speedy unquestioned, unsolicited approvals may sure apply.”
Assuming? assuming? HA Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha….. Please stop please stop.. I am having a stomach cramp.
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11 Greg Lopez // Mar 4, 2012 at 12:22 pm
@ K. Howell #5 & #7,
I made this point in another comment but would also like to point out to you.
When the people loose trust in their government, no matter what you do, the people will not trust you.
Julia Gillard maybe doing a good job – but after the “Kevin Rudd” incident, the “there will be no carbon emission tax under my government”, and now the “Bob Carr” incident, – very few Australians would trust her.
The mob that runs Malaysia is a mob that cannot be trusted at all. The Prime Minister is now saying that Lynas has to send the waste back to Australia. What a joke.
In a normal and mundane government, where policies are determined through evidence, this decision would probably be less chaotic.
But for a government that manufactures evidence to suit them, and destroys or ignores it when it is not in their favour, you can’t help if Malaysians do not trust their government.
You should read more about this mob. The faceless men that run the ALP would look like wimps or angels compared to this mob that runs Malaysia.
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12 K. Howell // Mar 6, 2012 at 12:21 pm
The argument that was put forward to the Malaysian public was nothing but Political Propaganda.
Claiming Malaysian politicians to be factually “corrupt” and “taking bribes” from companies is unethical, unjustified and unsubstanciated.
Please put some substance to your case to prove that such mentioned people are “corrupt” and “taking Bribes” then maybe you have something to go by.
Its quite apparant, the issue is not Lynas or its plant.
Its proven safe at least in International Standards and approved not only by Malaysian Authorities, but by the IAEA.
If its the government that oversees everything that is the “problem” take it up with them and stop putting politics in companies.
Abuse and false accusations will do no good for Malaysia or its people.
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13 Greg Lopez // Mar 6, 2012 at 1:26 pm
Ofcourse there is no corruption in Malaysia. Transparency International , Malaysians and the expatriate community have got it all wrong on Malaysia.
Mahathir did say in his blog that this issue is purely political. Never mind that his son, Mokhzani has a finger in the Lynas pie:
But do tell, when has a policy in Malaysia been made purely based on good intentions or sound arguments and evidence alone.
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14 Neptunian // Mar 7, 2012 at 1:14 pm
K. Howell # 11 claims of no corruption in Malaysia just drove his credibility to the negative zone. The list of corrupt practice is so long that it would be an encyclopaedic volumne if published.
Like I said, please get your head out of the sand first, then we talk. Meanwhile please explain the palatial homes, land banks, children’s fancy cars, overseas properties of BN politicians, massive stock holdings and before I forget the NFC “cow” story.
I am not sure if I should be sad for Howell or be angry, but this is a forum and anyone can say anything… and I am really from Neptune!
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15 Tee Zackem // Mar 7, 2012 at 10:39 pm
K.Howell, please stop commenting about Malaysia as if you know anything at all. I’m a Malaysian and I’m 100% sure that most of the figures running our country are corrupt.
I also know that it is impossible to stop Lynas due to many reasons. Let’s just say this is just another of many cases where corporations prioritize profits over everything else. It’s just how the monetary system works. It’s pretty much useless to be fighting against this when the tobacco industry kills more people than all the radiation victims combined.
I am, however, is very against the outdated social system, which runs on the monetary economy. This system is the root cause of so many problems and yet people have failed to see the big picture. The world needs a paradigm shift. A newer social system needs to replace the monetary system, and there’s an excellent system called Resource Based Economy which is advocated by The Venus Project and The Zeitgeist Movement. Visit http://www.thevenusproject.com and http://www.thezeitgeistmovement.com for more details.
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16 K. Howell // Mar 9, 2012 at 9:38 am
#12, Lynas’s LAMP project has attracted more than AUD600million in spending.
your claim that puts Kencana in a position where there is a conflict of interest over RM9million (AUD2.5million) because the CEO happens to be the son of a Politician is rediculous.
You are saying if a family member of a Politician is working for a company and another company has dealings with it they are corrupt.
#13, Sure, corruption is rife all around the World.
as per my reply to #12 if you consider this to be corruption, then every single business or corporate entity would have “bribed” politicians to act on their behalf for their benefit.
If you can produce any material that suggests that any of the AELB, Mosti, Miti, IAEA members were given handouts to approve LAMP please bring forward your evidence.
please produce evidence that members of parlament have expenditures way above their reported earnings (hence your claim of …palatial homes, land banks, children’s fancy cars, overseas properties of BN politicians, massive stock holdings …),
If this is the case then I would certainly look into opposition members, as they are much more likely to be recieving unethical donations to throw around on things you mention.
#14,
its not that there are no ways to stop Lynas.
Its simple, there is no nessesacity to Stop Lynas
Ryan may think LAMP would never have been approved in Australia and that’s the messege he wants you to believe,
However this is factually incorrect as Lynas had approval for its secondary plant in WA, well before it was announced that they will conduct processing in Malaysia.
All concerned,
We live in a world that is full of radiation as it is.
In fact the average human has 4400bq of radioactivity within our system at a almost constant rate (from the decay of naturally occuring radioactive isotopes of various minerals)
Lynas will be emitting such low levels of radiation,
It will take 18 years of constant full capacity production of 22,000tonnes of Rare earths for LAMP to “produce” 1 gram of Radium-228 as a direct result from the processing of Rare Earth ores containing 120tonnes of Thorium per year.
Radium decays to eventially become the toxic gas known as Radon-220, however in the case of LAMP the amount generated over any peroid is going to be significantly lesser than what is already present in the environment
-this is scientific fact, if you want to dispute it go ahead
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17 Neptunian // Mar 9, 2012 at 1:19 pm
K. Howell # 15
“if you have evidence that the politicians live beyond their income, bring forth the evidence”
From the above, one can surmise the following;
1. K Howell have never been to Malaysia
2. K. Howell knows nothing about Malaysia
OR
3. K. Howell smply is working for Lynas or a cyber trooper for the BN govt and have no problems lying thru his teeth, hoping that some readers of NM will believe him
One has to be both blind and deaf not to see the blatant opulence etc etc of BN connected elites. (actually, I do not even know why I am writing this… seems wasted on Howell) will be my last statement on this issue.. thanks
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18 K. Howell // Mar 12, 2012 at 8:10 am
#16
I have been to Malaysia a number of times, however I will admit I do not get involved in Local Politics whilst I’m in a foreign nation.
I have said this many times, and I’ll rephase so you can understand.
Lynas is not the government.
If you don’t like your government, vote them out.
Concerning LAMP and Lynas.
I have only provided the TRUTH, and provable facts, nothing more.
I do not need to falsify anything.
If you have an ability to understand Physics and Mathematics you would not be arguing with me.
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19 TEN // Mar 21, 2012 at 4:41 pm
K Howell, are you a Malaysian or do you reside in Malaysia or know the Malaysian people and culture well enough in the context of the 21st century?
If not I suggest you do not attempt to force you skewed opinions and justification on us. If you do reside in Malaysia, and do not reside near the LAMP site (which I am quite sure you do not, given it’s non-attractive nature), please indicate that you are moving there to prove your point (that the waste is not environmentally nor physiologically risky).
We are prepare to risk any future overseas investment from apparent about turn on so called approved ventures like these, but honestly, foreign investors are more astute in their assessment and judgement than you think.
You do not understand that the people of Malaysia of this era is purely concerned about environment, safety and the long term impact on our children and theirs. If political parties wants to join in the bandwagon, we will not stop them.
But our cause is noble and pure. We are not against Australia or it’s people. We are not against Aussie investments. But just do not dump rubbish in our backyard. Employment for 400 poor souls with no other benefits nor contribution to community is not a good trade off. We may be ‘poorer’ than our Aussie brothers, no thanks to a much much less competent government and ruling party, but we are not stupid. Fact is many of us are educated by your esteemed universities.
On the other hand, we are highly suspicious of your intentions. Come clean, or stand to be ridiculed and suspected.
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20 Rob // Apr 4, 2012 at 11:38 am
I too am perplexed at the unbelievable statement that you don’t want the proven and tested safe Australian business. You say you don’t want our pollution, you tell us to stay in our own country.
I.ll tell you why Lynas wanted to invest in Malaysia, not because we wanted to dump our rubbish in Malaysia, but because your successive governments have made it attractive to invest in Malaysia. You provide the right environment, the right qualified people, in other words the right place to invest. Like IBM like Acer, like HP all world renowned companies like Petrobras the Brazilian oil Company all producing waste in their manufacturing process but all safe like LYNAS invest and provide employment because you are a smart country. You have the most advanced technical park equal to any in the world in KL.
I wish that the Lynas plant could have been set up in Australia and provided employment for our engineers and operators, our plant builders etc. but we lack a smart government, we unfortunately have a government that lets investment opportunities go offshore.
Wake up Malaysia, get beyond the politics and enjoy the investment opportunity that you are being offered.
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