The month-long Klang
Valley water crisis last year spurred the Selangor government to look for new
sources of raw water, such as converting old mining ponds in Bestari Jaya into
reservoirs.
And yet the Selangor
government has approved the degazettement of106.65ha of the Ampang Forest
Reserve, a pristine water catchment forest, for the construction of the
EKVE. Furthermore, the Selangor State
Planning Committee, chaired by the MB, approved the amendments to the Local
Plan MPAJ 2020, on 2 June 2015, the
final step in government approvals, giving the EKVE the green light to begin
construction.
Forest reserves should not be viewed
as a cheap or convenient source of land for highway concessionaires. It is, in
fact, the costliest land as it provides environmental and ecological life
support to the urban population, and it can never be replaced once destroyed –
says Derek Fernandez, a lawyer and former Petaling Jaya councillor.
Given the important role of the
affected areas as water catchment, the Anti-KIDEX group have also added their
voice of support in questioning the Selangor government’s approval of
this highway project.
The inclusion of the highway in the
Ampang Jaya Local Plan now legally allows the project to proceed
unhindered, as the local plan is a public declaration by the Ampang Jaya
Municipal Council (MPAJ) that the project is be part of the municipality’s
future development blueprint.
Some 200,000 residents in Ukay Perdana, Ampang, are also shocked
that the Selangor state government has approved the changes to the alignment of
the EKVE. The Bukit Antarabangsa resident
task force-EKVE said the 32 Residents' Associations within the enclave of Bukit
Antarabangsa, Ukay Perdana, and Ukay Bistari are against the sudden approval of
the design of the EKVE, which will now exit through their neighbourhood. Furthermore, it appears that the EKVE alignment through this area will take over land that has been reserved for LRT stations, leaving no space for future public transport.
The EKVE was awarded via direct
tender to Ahmad Zaki Resources Berhad.
Given the push for increased public transportation, and the fragile
state of the Klang Valley’s water supply, the Federal and Selangor State
Governments must explain and justify why they support and approve the project.
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