400 families in Kuala Nerang fear soil erosion

More than 400 families in five villages want the Padang Terap District Office to immediately stop sand mining in Sungai Padang Terap to prevent soil erosion on their land.

The villages are Kampung Machang, Lubuk Ipoh, Kuala Kejai, Kampung Kubu and Kuala Pai, near here.

Kampung Lubuk Ipoh resident, Abdul Manap Awang, 56, claimed that the sand mining which had been going on since 2009 had caused landslips on their land for a stretch of 20 kilometres along the river.

He said as a result of the sand mining activities, the soil in their villages was being washed away.

"We are worried that if the problem is not resolved, we may face the risk of serious landslips, and some residents have already suffered losses when their land became part of the river," he told reporters when met here today.