Balancing economic growth and environmental protection: A sustainable approach to Malaysia's rare-earth industry

Abstract

The rapid advancement of technology has highlighted the importance of rare earth elements (REE) for achieving sustainability. However, despite their potential, there are several challenges such as high demand, price fluctuations, supply risks, and unstable geopolitical landscapes that hinder their recovery efforts. Malaysia has been involved in the REE industry for decades, mainly by processing tin mining by-products into rare earth minerals (monazite). In 2012, Lynas, an Australian company, established a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility called Lynas Malaysia in the Gebeng Industrial Estate near the Port of Kuantan in Malaysia, where they separate and process Rare Earth materials from imported monazite (lanthanide concentrate) to produce Rare Earths Oxide (REO). However, the locals have raised concerns about the production of radioactive by-products, leading to an activist movement against Lynas. To counter this, Malaysia aims to establish a comprehensive REE business strategy that utilizes local rare earth minerals. Although the extraction of REE from local ion adsorption clays (IC) has been advantageous with minimal issues relating to radioactive waste production, this review explores alternative local secondary sources that could be a sustainable REE source for Malaysia. The review also addresses the causes of the public protests and political interferences that jeopardize the industry's long-term sustainability. A progressive framework is proposed to improve current mineral processing practices and provide Malaysia with a viable rare-earth industry from upstream to downstream.