KAES 4143: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Semester 1 2014/2015
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Malaya

Challenges of EIA Implementation in Malaysia

Name

: Chin Ren Jie

Matric No.

: KES 110003

Lecturer

: Associate Professor Dr. Sumiani Binti Yusoff

Challenges of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

Implementation in Malaysia by Chin Ren Jie

Abstract
About twenty years ago, Garrett Hardin, an American ecologist, had alerted the world
about the dangers of overpopulation through the tragedy of the commons in a famous
1968 paper in Science (Hardin, 1968). The commons worldwide are competing to
develop and becoming more and more advance. The populations in the world increase in
exponential rate, thus the danger of overpopulation become more alarming. Thus,
Environmental Impact Assessment may be one way to rationally manage the resources in
proper way. Environmental Impact (Memon, 2002)Assessment (EIA) plays an important
role in balancing the environmental factors and new proposed development projects, for
minor structures as well as major structures. In Malaysia, Environmental Quality Act
1974 (EQA) was enacted and Department of Environment (DOE) was established to
implement the EQA. In 1976, under the 3rd Malaysia Plan (TMP), the importance of EIA
was realized and introduced. This is due to at the same time with the highly advanced
development which brings lots of benefits to economics, various environmental impacts,
either serious or minor and cumulative environmental degradations are aroused. This
paper includes background of EIA in Malaysia, the problem statement, the objectives of
the article, literature review on definition of EIA, role of EIA, quality control mechanism
of EIA in Malaysia, EIA issues in Malaysia and challenges of implementation of
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in Malaysia.

Introduction
1.1 Background
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) plays a role as a legal tool starts at year 1969
where the NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) was introduced and established in
USA. The procedures in Malaysian EIA are comparable to the National Environmental
Policy Act 1969 (NEPA) model in the United State. According to recent amendments to
the Environmental Quality Act 1974 (Prescribed Activities) (Environmental Impact
Assessment) Order 1987, it is mandatory for environmental impact assessment (EIA) to
be carried out for specific activities. There are 19 categories of prescribed activities,
namely agriculture, airport, drainage and irrigation, land reclamation, fisheries, forestry,
housing, industry, infrastructure, ports, petroleum, mining, power generation and
transmission, quarries, railways, transportation, resort and recreational development,
waste treatment and disposal, and water supply. The activity which requires EIA
according to project size is shown in Table 1. However, the Environmental Quality
(Prescribed Activities) (Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 1987 enacted is
applicable in Peninsular Malaysia. For Sabah and Sarawak, both state governments apply
their own rules and regulations, where Conservation of Environmental Enactment, 1996
(Amendment, 1999) (CEE) for Sabah and Natural resources and Environment Ordinance,
1949 (Amendments 1993 and 1997) (NREO) for Sarawak.

Table 1: Activities Subject to EIA (Activities Defined by Project Size)

Project Size
5000
500

Unit
Hectare
Hectare

500

Hectare

500
400

Hectare
Hectare

250
200

Hectare
Hectare

200
100
100
80
50
50

Hectare
Family
Hectare
Room
Hectare
Hectare

50
50

Hectare
Hectare

50
50

Hectare
Hectare

50
50
50
40

Hectare
Hectare
Kilometer
Hectare

2.3

Kilometer

Activity
Irrigation schemes
Land development schemes to bring forest into agriculture
production
Development of agricultural estates involving changes in
types of agriculture
Logging
Construction of dams and hydroelectric power scheme
reservoirs
Mining of mineral in new areas
Construction of dams and man-made lakes and artificial
enlargement of lakes
Construction of dams or impounding reservoirs
Agriculture programmer necessitating resettlement
Drainage of wetland, wild-life habitat or virgin forest
Construction of coastal resort facilities or hotel
Coastal reclamation
Land-based agriculture project accompanied by clearing of
mangrove swamps forest
Conversion of hill forest land to other land use
Conversion of mangrove swamps for industrial, housing or
agriculture use
Housing development
Industrial estate development for medium and heavy
industries
Sand dredging
Hill station resort or hotel development
Construction off-shore and on-shore pipeline
Construction of dams and hydroelectric power schemes with
dams over 15 meters high
Construction of airport

Sources: Department of Environmental Malaysia (Environmental Quality

(Prescribed Activities)(Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 1987)

1.2 Problem Statement

There are different EIA systems applied to development projects in Peninsular Malaysia,
Sabah and Sarawak. Without a centralized and uniform rules and regulations enforcement,
it is quite hard and a big challenge for Federal Government to actually implement the
EIA throughout the whole Malaysia. Furthermore, command and control approach is
applied in the pollution control law in the form of statutes and regulations in Malaysia
(Ali Memon). Thus, it creates an opportunity for the irresponsible parties as well as
companies to avoid from preparing EIA reports to get approval from authorities before
any development projects.

1.3 Objectives
The aim of this article is to study the challenges of EIA implementation in Malaysia on
the development projects in order to find a balance between the environment
conservation and preservation and the development process. Also it is aimed to suggest
some measures to improve the implementation of EIA in Malaysia. In order to achieve
the goals, the objectives are as follow:

i.

To study the history of EIA in Malaysia.

ii.

To study the quality control mechanism in Malaysia.

iii.

To study the issues related to implementation of EIA in Malaysia.

iv.

To suggest some measures to improve the implementation of EIA in Malaysia.

Literature reviews
2.1 Definition
There are various definitions for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) given by
different parties based on their different views and understanding about EIA.
Environmental impact assessment in (Munn, 1979) is defined as a need to identify and
predict the impact on the environment and on mans health and well-being of legislative
proposals, policies, programmes, projects and operational procedures, and to interpret and
communicate information about the impacts. (Wathern, 1988) defines EIA as a
process having the ultimate objective of providing the decision-makers with an indication
of the likely consequences of their actions (Canter, 1996) defines EIA as the physicalchemical, biological, cultural and socio-economic components of the total environment.
Department of Environment Malaysia defines EIA as study to identify, predict, evaluate
and communicate information about the impacts on the environment of a proposed
project and to detail out the mitigating measures prior to project approval and
implementation. In a nutshell, generally, EIA can be concluded as a system that is
required before starting any development projects in order to get the balance between
development and environmental conservation. In Malaysia, the EIA report is a must if the
project size excess the limit as stated in the Environmental Quality (Prescribed
Activities)(Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 1987.

2.2 Role of EIA

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) plays an important role as planning tool in
development. Its main purpose is: to give the environment its due place the decision
making process by clearly evaluating the environmental consequences of a proposed
activity before action is taken. The concept has ramifications in the long run for almost
all development activity because sustainable development depends on protecting the
natural resources which is the foundation for further development (Gilpin, 1995).
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is necessary for developed countries as well as
developing countries. Nevertheless, the procedure and practice of EIA for different
nations vary in different ways, for instance climate, ecology, resources, political and
administrative system, social and cultural systems, and the level and nature of economic
development (Lee N & George C, 2000). Following the step of United Stated, most of the
nations in the world introduce their own EIA regulations with detailed legislation which
is applied to the development projects that will cause significant impacts and influences
irrespective of the source of funding (Ortolano L. & A. Stepherd, 1995).

2.3 Quality Control Mechanism in Malaysia

In order to determine the effectiveness of EIA system, different types of mechanisms to
control the quality of an EIA system are applied which are legislative control, procedural
control, evaluative control, professional control, public/relevant agency control,
administrative control, judicial control, follow-up control and international control. There
are some arguments stating that the EIA can operate effectively without such mechanisms.
However, with the presence of such mechanisms, the process will be transparent, any

shortcomings as well as defects will be clearly reflected and the system will be less open
to abuse (Dr. Wen-Shyan Leu, Dr. W. P. Williams& Dr. A. W. Bark, 1997). Table 2
shows the summary analysis of quality control mechanisms in the Malaysia.
Table 2: Summary Analysis of Quality Control Mechanisms in Malaysia
Quality control mechanisms
Legislative control

Malaysia
The legal basis for EIA was set out in 1985
Guidelines for the procedure in general are
available
Lack of EIA technical guidelines
Procedure control
Formal stages for scoping, public participation
in detailed assessment, but not in preliminary
assessment.
Evaluative control
Independent EIA review by EIA Review Panel
for detailed assessment, but not for preliminary
assessment (majority of EIA cases).
Professional control
Regular EIA training organized by the INTAN
(Institut Tadbiran Awam Negara) and relevant
professional NGOs.
The DOE maintains a database of consultants
for the use as references.
Public/Relevant agency control
More channels available in detailed
assessment, but limited in preliminary
assessment (majority of the EIA cases).
Administrative control
The DOE is the core agency for development
and management of EIA system.
The Appeal Board has not yet been set up.
Judicial control
Non-existent.
Follow-up control
Implementation at state level as not been
effective due to lack of manpower and
resources.
Instrumental control
The Governmental shows a strong resistance to
international pressures.
Sources: Adopted and Modified from Table 2. Summary of analysis of quality
control mechanisms in the case-study countries (Dr. Wen-Shyan Leu , Dr.
W. P. Williams & Dr. A. W. Bark, 1997)

2.4 EIA Issues in Malaysia

There are lots of EIA issues and problems have been identified in Malaysia. According to
(Harun, 1994), issues and problems which are comparable to those in other developing
countries, include:

Lack of awareness of the strength of EIA as a planning tool. Many still perceive
EIA as a stumbling block to development.

Perception that carrying out on EIA study would delay project approval and
implementation.

EIA not carried out prior to final project design, so that issues such as siting and
technology are not considered.

Lack of base-line data on environmental quality.

Poor prediction of impacts.

Limited public participation.

Taking an example, an area located at near Paya Indah Wetlands, Sepang which was
already gazette as Rizab Tanah Lembab Negara in Selangor. EIA approval should be
applied for digging of sand is 50 hectares or more as stated in the regulations, thus the
relevant parties put aside and avoid themselves from preparation of EIA reports by
developing a land with only 20 hectares instead of 50 hectares. Truth to do sand mining
activity given that in the area without EIA approvals standard due to land area less than
50 hectares (Berita Harian Online). However, statement states that activity are involved
is already ratted on condition because the area has been dug and dug as deep as about 60
meters (The Malaysia Insider, 18 January 2011). Nevertheless, those areas are certainly

contaminated and it is surprising that there has no broadly buffer zone at least 20 meters
from border area next to Paya Indah Wetlands where the evidence is the survey made by
Persatuan Percinta Alam Sekitar.
In Malaysia, based on the article 74 of the Federal Constitution, the issues regarding the
land, rivers, forests, local government, and town and country planning are within the
jurisdiction of the respective State Authority. Thus, each state has their own laws on the
items as listed in the State List in the Federal Constitution. What the adverse impact of
the above scenario is that there is lack of uniformity and cause the weakness of
environmental regulations in certain areas. For instance, the most current issue that
reflects the controversy surrounding the powers of Federal State agencies during the
submission of the proposal for construction is the Bakun Hydroelectric Dam (Bakun
Dam) in Sarawak (Jaria, 2005)There is a conflict that the Bakun Dam construction will
follow the rules and regulations under EQA 1974 which is federal environmental
legislation or be governed by Sarawak State law, called Natural Resources Ordinance
1949. Based on the existed EIA federal, it is a requirement that the project developer to
make the EIA report public consultation before the approval of EIA report. However, the
existed Sarawak State Legislation excludes this requirement. The division of powers
between the federal and state government causes the overall planning for environmental
management become complicated and ineffective. Quoted from (Safruddin, 1988), it is
the interaction between design and process and consequently between the competing
interests that defines centre-state relations in Malaysia.

Discussion
From the view of the observers either local or foreign, environmental rules and
regulations of Malaysia is one of the best among the nations in the world. Ironically, the
effective of the existed legislation is quite unimpressive due to some challenges.

3.1 Lack of enforcement

In Malaysia, the power over the land uses and the natural resources is belonged to the
State government. Although Department of Environment (DOE) is the agency with given
responsibility to implement the EIA, it is quite hard to have regular enforcement of law
due to the lack of uniformity of the existed law. Also, the environmental regulations and
rules are based on command and control approaches. It is stating clearly in the
environmental rules and regulations, the penalties and fines along with imprisonment will
be charged on the case where the occurrence infraction of the legal provision. However,
there is a lack of strictly implementing mandatory requirements for EIA, for instance,
without using the power on fine imposing to the development project which brings
adverse impacts on environment and sosio-economic or undergoing an EIA report.
Moreover, the developers realized that the responsible authorities do not take strictly
action and the existing penalties for breaking the law is quite low. Thus due to lack of
enforcement machinery, irresponsible parties abuse this opportunity to carry out EIA
after purchasing of land or even after starting the construction projects. All this type of
irresponsible attitude cause the EIA down-graded as a formality only.

3.2 Lack of coordination among related parties

It is a common phenomenon that there is lacking of coordination between the consultants,
EIA proponents, DOE, planners and decision-makers. The weak coordination among the
relevant parties will lead to ineffective scoping, impact assessment and also the
consideration of the concerned departments views in the EIA report. Consequences is
that the formation of obstacles in the implementation of environmental regulations
effectively. Also, as an initiative to prevent critism, disagreement, and controversy in
conducting all interpersonal relations in a smooth and unthreatening manner, Malaysians
adopt the Southeast Asian style of dealing with unpleasant or dangerous situations which
is avoidance and silence, repressing the emotions with the hope that the problem will
disappear if matters are smoothed over (Lucian W. Pye & Mary W. Pye, 1985). In a
nutshell, without a good and systematic coordination between all relevant parties, the
implementation of EIA will be failed and hardly to reflect its role and function in
sustainable development.

3.3 Lack of review and poor quality EIA report

In Malaysia, it can be concluded that most of the EIA report is quite poor in their quality
and unsatisfactory. The lack of EIA technical guidelines is the major cause of the
problem. Furthermore, in majority EIA cases, there are formal stages for scoping, public
participation in the detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIA) but not for
preliminary Environmental Impact Assessment (PEIA). For DEIA, independent EIA
review will be done by EIA Review Panel. Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment is

required in certain fields such as dams and reservoirs, resettlement and urban
development, infrastructure, industrial facilities, energy and mineral extraction, waste
management and disposal of hazardous and toxic material, and energy development.
Since DEIA is more easily to be assessed by public or relevant agency, it may not create
a big problem, but for the PEIA which has only limited channels to be assessed, there is a
chance that there are defects in PEIA which are not realized. Thus, the lack of expertise
and limited resources with executing authorities will result in inferior decision making.

3.4 Lack of public awareness

Public involvement plays an important role and is a mandatory at various stages of EIA
such as screening, scoping, report preparation and decision making (Wood, 1995). Most
of the developed or developing nations in the world encourage the public involvement in
EIA. However, in Malaysia, the public awareness about the importance of EIA is still
very poor and unsatisfactory. Rarely, public involve themselves in the planning and
decision making. This may due to the lack of exposure to the knowledge in the field of
EIA. Therefore, yet to be evaluated, the significant of public involvement in Malaysia
EIA system.

3.5 Poor implementation of mitigation methods

There are shortcomings in implementation of EIA due to the lack of enforcement
machinery and environmental authorities. Furthermore, the role of government is very
important in the implementation of EIA. The environmental management, conservation
and preservation issues in Malaysia, including EIA implementation is evidently low. At
the 1989 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Malaysia, the outcome
document Langkawi Declaration on Environment stated, at Malaysias insistence, that
environmental concerns should not be used to introduce a new form of condition on aid
and development financing, nor as a pretext for creating unjustified barriers trade (Dr.
Wen-Shyan Leu, Dr. W. P. Williams& Dr. A. W. Bark, 1997). Thus, government should
put attention and have a look on the importance and benefits of EIA implementation in
order to find a balance between the environment management with the development in
order to achieve Vision 2020.

4. Conclusions and Recommendations

Malaysia is a developing country equipped with one of the best sets of environmental
regulations, having several of developing projects in order to achieve Vision 2020 and
become an advanced country in the eye of the world. The EIA system in Malaysia is
evolving steadily, unfortunately, there are several weakness found in the system in
implementation as well as the actual practice. The lack of enforcement, lack of expertise
limited technical and financial resources, weak coordination among the relevant parties,
and lack of public awareness in participating in EIA will stunt the implementation of EIA
system in Malaysia. Therefore, the effect of EIA on the development projects in the
Malaysia is still very weak.
In order to improve the implementation of the EIA system in Malaysia, lots of
efforts and initiatives need to be taken. Different parties such as governmental agency,
NGO, consultant, EIA proposals, planners, decision-makers, media, and public should
play their own roles well without fail in order to strengthen the EIA system in Malaysia.
The measures stated in the following may help to improve and enhance the efficiency in
implementation of EIA.
Enactment of existing law. For example, increasing the year of imprisonment to
the highest administrators of the development projects where the infraction of
legal provision is found and give a high amount of fining plus a penalty by
banning the related company from carrying such development activities for few
months or even few years.

Enforcement of the existing law. Strictly enforcement is required to the current

development projects. The relevant departments should train and make sure the
officers carry out their roles assigned well without fail. Since there are some
controversy between the federal environmental legislation and State Law of
Sabah and Sarawak , the relevant departments or the authorities may discuss and
try to come out with a suitable solution, i.e. a uniform and centralized
environmental act, so that there will not be any dispute.

Good coordination between the relevant parties such as EIA proponents,

consultants, DOE, planners and decision-makers. With the strong interaction
between the relevant parties, lots of conflicts or problems can be solved. A good
quality of EIA report can be produced and thus the sustainable development can
be realized.
Encourage public involvement in EIA system. Public awareness about the
importance of involvement of public in EIA can be improved through running
some awareness campaign as well as through the exposure of media either from
traditional media such as newspapers, journals or the advanced media such as
internet sources, social networks like Facebook, Twitter and others. The
knowledge about the EIA should be given the public starting from school.
Through the initiative, the young generation will have at least some exposure
about EIA, so that they can participate in the implementation of EIA in Malaysia.
Government role. The government should encourage the sustainable development
and aware of environmental issues caused by the development projects. Approval
of any development projects must be done based on the complete EIA reports.

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