KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 28 — Incumbent Selayang MP William Leong Jee Keen has urged the Selangor state government to address concerns surrounding the establishment of 27 quarries in the Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve here, before the 15th general election (GE15).

In a statement, the PKR lawmaker said that the Selangor government should examine if the quarry developers and operators were issued licences via the proper procedures.

"All parties have to work together to develop the human resources and to educate the communities on the sustainable development of this industry while preserving the environment.

"This can only be done by the Selangor government being transparent and forthright in dealing with the needs for economic growth with protection of the environment. What needs to be done is to hold full and frank discussions with an open book.

"It cannot be done by hiding behind the Official Secrets Act (OSA) or to circumvent the objective of preserving the forest reserve by using technicalities and disingenuous arguments,” he said.

Ng added that pending a review, the state government should suspend the licences involved, except for eight quarries that have already begun operations.

"Following the suspension and review, it is suggested that public consultation be undertaken to consider a sustainable development strategy for quarry operations in Bukit Lagong,” he added.

On September 27, Malaysiakini reported the opening of these 27 quarries, adding that these projects would cover 887 hectares — a space equivalent to 1,657 football fields.

Reportedly, among the developers involved in the quarrying are three developers linked to the Selangor state government.

Two of them are Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated and Permodalan Negeri Selangor Berhad — both are chaired by Amirudin — while the other is Koperasi Jabatan Perhutanan Negeri Selangor Berhad.

Furthermore, it was reported that only one out of the 27 quarry developers had submitted an environmental impact assessment report to the Department of Environment — which is a requirement that should have been fulfilled before they were provided licences to begin development.

Additionally, according to the report, when watchdogs requested information on these quarries under the Freedom of Information (State of Selangor) Enactment, they were declined and told that the information is classified as "confidential and secret” under the Official Secrets Act 1972.