THE Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report of the Penang South Islands (PSI) project has received conditional approval from the Department of Environment (DoE) under the Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change recently.
Following this, Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said there were a total of 17 items that encompassed all the 71 conditions imposed by the DoE that must be complied with.
“Among them are Article A which is about compliance with environmental-related Acts, and Article B which is about the description of the activities such as dredging and land reclamation works as approved by the DoE.
“Article C is about the concept and design of the project as per the application. It mentioned developing three islands – Islands A, B and C – as well as the area of each island, and other related things.
“Then, Article D is about controlling land reclamation and dredging activities that must be carried out in phases and using methods submitted during the application.
“They include using the dredging and dumping management monitoring system, installing a silt curtain, building a containment system parameter, and other related things,” Chow said during a press conference today at Komtar.
Apart from that, Chow also listed other conditions such as erosion and silt control, water, air and noise quality control and monitoring according to the parameters set by the DoE and the relevant authorities.
“Others include monitoring and controlling of the coastline and hydrography, handling chemicals, petroleum and waste materials, control and prevention as well as security and emergency control,” he added.
Chow also shared that the Environmental Management Plan (EMP) must be prepared according to the format specified in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report and must be submitted to the DoE before any development works begin.
“Next, is the plan for the Transition, Maintenance, Delay, Closure, Termination and Project Recovery.
“Following that is the environmental audit, which must be done every three months throughout the land reclamation, dredging works as well as reporting work.
“In terms of administration, it is necessary to appoint a certified Environmental Control Officer to monitor the implementation of the entire project.
“The last one is about any change involving ownership or project management must be notified to DoE within 30 days. This is a standard practice in any infrastructure development. We must adhere to the additional conditions should there be any,” Chow said.
Chow added that anyone who like to know more about the 71 conditions set by DoE for the project, could get it from the state agency, Penang Infrastructure Corporation Sdn Bhd (PIC).
In his reply to a reporter, Chow said he could not stop any non-governmental organisations (NGOs) or political parties from politicising the issue concerning the PSI project.
“Nevertheless, the state government is very open in accepting views and is transparent in developing this project. There is nothing to hide.
“We have even displayed it in the previous election manifesto.
“The real challenge is not in the approval of the EIA report but rather in implementing the project and we are very optimistic that the project can help elevate Penang to the next level.
“For those who would like to know more about PSI can check out its website,” Chow said while adding that the idea of coming up with the PSI project was initiated back in 2013 and it has gone through a long and tedious process.
The PSI project involves the development of three artificial islands with an area of 4,500 acres in the southern waters of Penang. Island A will be 2,300 acres in size, Island B will be 1,400 acres and Island C will be 800 acres.
The project is set to promote social empowerment and sustainable development which includes empowering the fishermen and local community.
In a statement, PIC said the development of Island A’s 700-acre Green Tech Park, would cater for high-tech industries of the future.
“It would drive the creation of over 460,000 jobs and generate a forecasted Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of RM2.2 trillion in a 30-year time frame,” the statement said.
Story by Tanushalini Moroter
Pix by Alissala Thian
Video by Law Suun Ting