GEORGE TOWN – Fishermen from the Sg Batu unit in Bayan Lepas are calling for ongoing Silicon Island reclamation works at the southern coast of Penang Island to be temporarily halted.
This stemmed from suspicions that the project has contributed to an “unusually high” level of muddy pollution involving loose sediment deposits at the Sg Batu coast.
In a statement shared by advocacy group Penang Tolak Tambak, the fishermen unit’s chief, Zakaria Ismail, said that the unit has witnessed this pollution phenomenon since August 2024.
He also said that the fishermen felt there was a “huge possibility” that the ongoing reclamation project for the 2,300-acre-wide artificial island is the “primary contributor” behind the pollution, as such a severe silt problem had never occurred before the commencement of this project.
The locals are also taking a hard hit as the pollution has disrupted fishery activities and affected their income. With the silt level going as deep as 1m, fishermen’s boats are stuck – preventing them from going to the sea to catch seafood.
Zakaria said that in August alone, the unit’s fishermen could only go to the sea for only 10 days due to the silt and thunderstorms.
He also said that the fishermen unit will contact the Environment Department to push for an investigation to identify the actual cause of the silt pollution problem.
“It is hoped that the relevant authorities such as Fisheries Development Authority, the Fisheries Department, and the Agrotechnology, Food Security and Cooperatives Development executive councillor Fahmi Zainol would take the necessary actions.
“The Sg Batu fishermen community is calling for the Silicon Island reclamation project to be temporarily halted until a full investigation on this excessive silt pollution is completed,” said Zakaria.
Sg Batu is located near the island project site. Zakaria and the fishermen unit have been outspoken in opposing the reclamation project, from when it was proposed several years ago as a three-island project until it was scaled down to one island last year.
The project went on despite protests by fishermen and local civil society groups who claimed that the massive-scale reclamation activities would harm the marine ecosystem in southern Penang Island.
The reclamation works began in September last year, with Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow reportedly saying that the state government is targeting 400 acres of land to be claimed per year over the span of nine years. – September 6, 2024