Dialogue on Lynas’ radioactivity needed to allay fears

PETALING JAYA: A public forum on the radioactivity of residue produced by the Lynas plant is needed as the issue had been sensationalised, says Universiti Malaya Professor of Medical Physics Prof Dr Ng Kwan Hoong.

He said more should be done to improve the public’s scientific knowledge of the radioactivity of the residue from the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant ( LAMP) in Gebeng, Kuantan.

There has been a lack of public engagement on the matter which has resulted in too much misunderstanding, he said.

Engagement sessions must be organised to allow the government, Lynas Corporation, scientists and members of the public to dialogue, he added.

“Residents want a chance to voice their concerns and to have their fear and anxiety put to rest.

“There has been a trust deficit which takes many years to rebuild,” he said.

Radiation is seen as negative by the public, he added, although radioactivity has been in existence since the earth was formed.

“There has been primordial radionuclide (atoms with excessive energy) in existence for aeons,” he said, adding that this includes thorium, uranium, actinium and potassium.

“Even the coffee we drink has some amount of radioactivity. Radiation is not something to be feared,” he said.

He added that the controversial water leach purification (WLP) residue from LAMP is about 6-7 Bq (Becquerel = unit of radioactivity) per gramme.

Although the level requires the residue needs to be regulated by the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB), he said, the radioactivity was low compared to waste produced by nuclear power plants.

The Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Ministry (Mestecc), had recently instructed Lynas to export the WLP residue out of Malaysia.

Prof Ng said other types of residue produced by LAMP, which are the neutralisation underflow residue (NUF) and the flue gas sulphurisation residue (FGD), measure to less than 1 Bq/g.

He added however that Lynas Corp should provide real time information on the background radia- tion at the plant site and its vicinity.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a global organisation promoting the safe use of nuclear energy, had reported in 2014 that the radiological risks associated with LAMP operations were “intrinsically low”.

Prof Ng said it would not be possible to guarantee that there are no risks, but these must be weighed against the potential benefits.

“There is no such thing as zero harm in this world, but what we must do is ensure that the level of risk must be as low as reasonably-achieavable,” he said.

Prof Ng has over 25 years of experience consulting for the IAEA and is serving as its consultant in the Fukushima recovery programme.

The coffee we drink has some amount of radioactivity. Radiation is not something to be feared. Prof Dr Ng Kwan Hoong