Green Movement Takes Root in Malaysia KUALA LUMPUR - When a planned 24-hour environmental protest gets under way Saturday on the outskirts of the Malaysian coastal town of Kuantan, the roll call will include speakers from across the country. While the catalyst for the rally is the construction of a rare earth refinery nearby - the target of a sustained campaign by local residents and environmental groups - the crowd is also expected to hear from people from other parts of Malaysia who are concerned about projects near their homes that they fear could be damaging the environment. Among them will be residents of a fishing village near an oil and gas plant in the southern state of Johor; people from Perak State who are worried about the potential effects of an iron ore refinery on a mangrove forest; and villagers from Pahang State who are concerned about possible pollution from a gold mine, according to Wong Tack, chairman of the group behind the protest, Himpunan Hijau, which means "Green Assembly" in Malay. Himpunan Hijau is hoping to draw attention to these projects by taking advantage of the momentum of the campaign against the rare earth refinery being built by the Australian mining company Lynas, which has prompted thousands to join protests and invigorated the country's environmental movement. Malaysia, a nation rich in biodiversity, has often attracted the wrath of environmental groups concerned about issues like illegal logging and the loss of habitat for the endangered orangutan. While some local groups have been active for decades, many of the fiercest campaigns have come from foreign organizations, and analysts say few projects or industries have galvanized Malaysian environmentalists the way the Lynas refinery near Kuantan appears to have done. "The kind of protests, the kind of activism that we see for the Lynas plant, is something unprecedented," said Khoo Kay Peng, a management consultant and policy analyst. Others say the rising level of awareness in Malaysia may mean that companies engaged in industries or activities deemed potentially hazardous to the environment are likely to face greater oversight. "Foreign businesses involved in projects that could damage the environment - such as mining, logging or exploration - are liable to encounter scrutiny from local environmental groups and government sources," said Maria Patrikainen, a Southeast Asia analyst at the consulting institution IHS. She added that the government was likely to become increasingly sensitive to the concerns of environmental groups, particularly before elections that are widely expected to be held later this year. The campaign against the rare earth plant began in earnest in March 2011, when some Kuantan residents established a group, Save Malaysia Stop Lynas, to voice their concerns that the plant could produce harmful radiation, a claim vigorously denied by Lynas. Environmental organizations swiftly rallied around the residents" group, helping to organize protests, send petitions to the government and issue statements in support, said Tan Bun Teet, chairman of Save Malaysia Stop Lynas. Himpunan Hijau provides an example of how this movement has grown. The group was formed last September, initially to help organize the campaign against the rare earth refinery, but it is now also helping residents in other states lobby against projects they consider a threat to the environment. Among them are people on the island of Penang who are concerned about housing developments encroaching on coastal areas and hillsides. "We garner the people's power," said Mr. Wong, the chairman, describing the group as a "grass-roots people's movement." Rare earth metals are found in nature with radioactive contaminants that must be separated and disposed of during refining. Lynas says that the waste produced in this process will be well within levels considered safe and that the plant has been subject to "a thorough and lengthy regulatory review" to ensure that it meets the highest international safety standards. The plant, estimated to cost 2.5 billion ringgit, or nearly $800 million, is expected to weaken China's dominance of the production of rare earths, which are used in a range of high-technology products including smartphones, electric cars and military equipment.