In the article “Nature Group seeks
more information on the impact of Cross Island Line Site Investigations” Neo
(2018) stated that nature lovers are encouraging the public to voice out their
concerns towards the Land Transport Authority (LTA) regarding the drilling
works for the future Cross Island MRT line. The public is anticipating whether
LTA would release the whole process of monitoring programs as “endangered”
animals were spotted after site investigation was completed. They also doubt
that LTA did a great job in the environmental impact assessment as the result
was “mainly moderate” and was unwilling to provide comment nor evidence when
asked. Nature lovers urge LTA to “provide assurance” and re-emphasize that
monitoring program should continue even if the site investigation ends. They
also highlighted that the monitoring methods and data are the keys to clear the
doubts within the public as the information available was insufficient. Actions
taken by the nature reserve group are understandable to a certain extent
however, LTA did consider the nature reserve and is trying to provide the finest
plan that benefits both the environment and public.
A major factor that LTA has been
taking into consideration is the public in terms of both the commuters and the
residents that stay around the future construction area. In the article “Running
under nature reserve, the better option” Hoi (2019) stated that an additional of
$2 billion in miscellaneous costs such as acquiring properties, engineering
problems, and longer commute duration as compared to the direct alignment. In
response to this statement, the government is paying more for a longer route
which will directly affect the commuters as travel fare will increase as well.
Also, residents around the construction area might face noise pollution and
forced to shift house if skirting alignment is accepted. This will create many
inconveniences for elderly residents around the area.
Another factor that plays a huge
role in LTA’s decision is nature reserves. LTA did emphasize that they would
continue with their efforts to minimize the environmental impacts that come
along with the construction in the future. Moreover, Hoi (2019) also stated
that impacts are only momentary and “nature will replenish the ecological
footprints”. Phase 2 of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) which assesses
the potential environmental impact of the construction and operations, as well
as the mitigation measures, declare that all the constructions on land are
located out of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve (CCNR). The report also
stated that in terms of habitat, installations of fabricated crossing aid such
as poles and rope bridges are designed to lend a hand for the endangered
animals. At the same time, Anthony O’ Dempsey, an LTA independent reviewer of
the phase 2 EIA stated that “From an ecology and biodiversity point of view,
the two alignment options are comparable in terms of habitat loss. Both options
result in the loss of nominally 3 hectares of regrowth forest.”
Even though LTA is currently in a
tough position as they must appeal to both the commuters and the nature reserve
group request, they are still welcoming the public to raise their concern
towards this project. This has proven that the LTA is trying their best to
please all parties and come out with the finest solution.
Word Count: 540
References
Land Transport Authority. (2019, September 2). Cross Island
Line. Retrieved from https://www.lta.gov.sg/content/ltaweb/en/public-transport/projects/cross-island-line.html
Hoi, P. C. P. (2019, September 6). Running under nature
reserve the better option. The
Straits Time. Retrieved
from https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/running-under-nature-reserve-the-better-option
Neo, C. C. (2018, June 28). Nature group seeks more
information on impact of Cross Island Line site investigations. Todayonline. Retrieved from https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/nature-group-seeks-more-information-impact-cross-island-line-site-investigations
Toh, T. W. (2019, September 3). Cross Island Line: Running
under nature reserve or skirting it both feasible, says LTA. The Straits Time. Retrieved from https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/cross-island-line-running-under-nature-reserve-or-skirting-it-both-feasible-says
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