Continued Engagement With The Public Necessary, Say Rare Earth Experts

By Siti Hawa Othman KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 (Bernama) -- Rare earth experts say Lynas has been very open and direct in its response to misconceptions about the company's rare earth plant in Gebeng, Kuantan. They understand that people have their own perspectives of things, and feel that further communication and continued engagement are necessary for the public to understand the processes involved and the potential of the industry. At the end of the day, facts matter, they say. Alastair S. Neill, a leading rare earth expert from Canada and Executive Vice-President of Dacha Strategic Metals, said: "You cannot question other people's perception because everybody has his own perspective, his own viewpoint. "But at the end of the day, it has to come down to the facts and numbers and fact-based information," he told Bernama during a visit to the Gebeng plant Tuesday in conjunction with the International Rare Earth Symposium, organised by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM), where he was a guest speaker. Other experts in the team included Prof Chun-Hua Yan from Peking University, Christoph Wilhelm from the Karlsruhr Institute of Technology in Germany and Jack Lifton, co-founder of Technology Metals Research LLC from the United States. The experts were briefed by Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd management team, led by Managing Director Mashal Ahmad. Neill said the briefing was very professional and that Lynas was trying to be as open and direct as possible in tackling misinformation about the plant. Lifton said he was impressed with the safety and sophistication of the plant. "The plant is a big complex and people don't usually understanding things that are bigger than they are," he said. Chun who is director of the state key lab of rare earth materials chemistry and applications at Peking University, said Lynas should communicate better with the public and convince them why it had came in, what it would introduce and why the future would be bright. "Not only on separation but also leading to the development of application of rare earth to the functional materials and devices. Its a broad application and a bright future. "But recently, I think, the public cannot understand it well and hence it is the duty of Lynas to be more transparent to release the relevant data," he said. He said if public concern were taken care of and they could understand things better, then they would be able to assist Lynas and provide the feedback which would be beneficial for all. Wilhelm who heads the analytical laboratories safety management department at the Karlsruhr Institute, he said Lynas had given a very open presentation and had addressed their problems well. He said Lynas should support and work together with universities for them to make analysis so that the public could trust the results. ASM Vice President Datuk Ir Ahmad Zaidee Laidin said the academy kept an open mind over the issues, noting that a lot of perceptions had dominated the recent symposium. "As far as ASM is concerned, we kept an open mind. We are not about to support or go against the project. We want to see what are the real science, the dangers, the risks as well as the benefits," he said. He saw the need for further engagements and could see that Lynas had been responding to criticisms positively. "In correcting perceptions, one cannot fault the people but we have to continue to give facts and figures and reality to show that," he said. -- BERNAMA