District officer Abdul Shukor Abdul Ghani said the decision was reached following a study by the relevant departments whose officers visited the village recently.

"From the study, the Department of Environment (DOE), Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) and Muda Agriculture Development Authority (MADA) unanimously agreed that the location of the proposed pig abattoir is unsuitable as it will be near houses and will pollute the area," he said here Sunday.

Abdul Shukor said the building of the proposed abattoir only about 100 metres away from the residents' homes also failed to meet the condition for a buffer zone which should be 500 metres as stipulated by the DOE.

Besides that, he added, the land owner who had agreed to lease out the land for the abattoir today withdrew from the deal after taking into consideration the residents' interests.

Abdul Shukor was speaking to reporters after receiving a protest memorandum over the abattoir project from the Pendang district 4B Youth movement chairman, Ramli Abu Bakar.

According to Bernama, some time ago, more than 100 residents of Kampung China marched from the Pendang Umno building to the District Office to protest the location of the proposed pig abattoir in their village.

A resident, Edin Chok Edin Proot, 52, said the residents protested against the move as the abattoir would also be near the Buddhist temple where most of the Siamese residents prayed.

He said if the pig abattoir was built in the village, the lives of more than 800 residents would be affected as they would be facing a serious pollution problem.

"We object to the abattoir project in our area and hope the state government will reconsider the decision and find another site," he said.