TURNING a blind eye to the bauxite mining operations in Kuantan has led to a public health scare. If not immediately addressed, the long-term effect is the proliferation of cancer incidents caused by ecosystem contamination. In an industry that has been around for well over a century, worldwide, this state of affairs is unforgivable. What is more, the Pahang menteri besar says action will depend on what the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) finds after its investigation into the public health threat that the bauxite mining there presents. But, why wait for the AELB to concur with tests that have already shown early signs of radiation poisoning? Wisdom, one would have thought, should dictate immediate action to prevent the situation from worsening. To make matters worse, Terengganu has caught the illegal bauxite mining fever, too.
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