Economic and social consequences of resource exploitation: the case of tin mining and rural communities in the kinta valley, malaysia.

Natural resources are vital to a country's development, particularly for those, like Malaysia, in the "take-off" stage. Optimal use of such resources is important, but also there should be a balanced consideration in regard to the profitability and socio-cultural impacts of such use. This study is concerned with land resource allocation between agriculture and mining for tin ore in the Kinta Valley of Peninsular Malaysia. Conventional calculations are made which show that mining activity is very profitable compared with agriculture over a short period. Mining appears to produce as much financial profit as agriculture can produce over 30 years. The allocation of land for mining becomes more attractive if the mined land can be allocated to another use immediately after mining operation ceases. However, this is not always possible and the financial profitability of mining agricultural land becomes questionable in the long term. The thesis also argues that financial profitability should not be the sole criterion in the allocation of land between agriculture and tin mining. A study is made of former and existing villages in the Kinta Valley to estimate the socio-cultural consequences of mining agricultural land. Even though the socio-cu1tural consequences of mining are difficult to quantify, the study shows how mining disrupts village life. While villagers are resettled, often with financial compensation, cohesive village communities, which have been developed over many generations, are destroyed. These negative socio-cultural effects are very severe and can be felt for many years after resettlement. The study estimates that any positive effects are outweighed by negative effects, with the compensation paid to villagers for the mining of their farmland failing to redress the balance. However, it appears that group, as compared with individual, resettlement with better housing facilities, can improve the standard of living of affected villagers and lessen the effects of being relocated to an unfamiliar environment.