Developer riled by illegal land clearing

Consultant: Neighbouring landowner didn’t obtain permission from authorities

BUKIT MERTAJAM: The developer of a 34ha land near the Mengkuang Dam here is dismayed that a neighbouring landowner trespassed into and illegally cleared trees on his land.

Its consultant Adib Anas said state approval was being obtained for the mixed development site when they found out about the trespass.

The project involves, among others, 370 units of low-cost and medium-cost flats, 600 units of landed houses and a commercial area.

“Not only did the landowner not obtain permission before building an access road to his land up on the hill, but he also excavated sand from the piece of land and used it to cover a large area on top of the marsh.

“There should’ve been proper measures taken such as building a silt trap and culvert big enough to redirect water flow before the trees on the hill were cleared.

“Although the clearing on the developer’s land is only about 10% of the whole project area, it may delay the approval for the project,” he said yesterday.

Adib added that villagers downstream need not worry about the project triggering floods as at least three retention ponds would be built under the RM500mil project.

“The ponds with parks around them will help to hold water, and we expect it to reduce flooding downstream,” he said.

In Kampung Mengkuang about 1km away, prison warden Mohd Anuar Othman said he was still haunted by a major flood in 1999 which caused water and mud to gush into his house after heavy rain.

The 35-year-old father of four said the flood 20 years ago damaged all their furniture.

“After the rain, the muddy water came flowing into the village and rose up to chest level.

“My family did not have time to salvage anything, and I remember seeing my textbooks floating in the bedroom,” he said.

Mohd Anuar said flooding in the village may have been reduced over the years after the river bund was raised by about a metre, but the villagers are concerned about the logging and hill clearing upstream which may lead to another disaster.

Another resident, Fauzi Shaari, 43, in Kampung Mengkuang Titi, about 3km away, said the villagers were worried as the rainy season was approaching.

“We experience flash floods about 10 times a year, usually up to 30cm high. The river behind our houses helps to channel water discharged from the newly-expanded Mengkuang Dam which has yet to operate.

“With the rapid development in the area, we worry about more frequent floods once the dam is filled and starts to overflow,” he said.

During the catastrophic storm which struck Penang two years ago, Fauzi said the water level was up to the roof of his house.

Kampung Mengkuang Titi Village Community Management Council chairman Abd Hamid Maidin explained that there are about 500 houses and about 3,000 residents in the village.

“As the village is on low-lying ground, development in the area over the past 20 years had caused the water to flow into the village, causing floods.

“Water would pour in from various directions and the villagers had to work hard to maintain the drains and river banks. The drainage system thus needs further upgrading in line with the surrounding development,” he said.

On Tuesday, it was reported that villagers in Kampung Mengkuang Titi and Kampung Mengkuang were at the mercy of mother nature following deforestation and illegal logging on a hill near the Mengkuang Dam.

All that is left of the land, which is the size of two football fields, is barren soil and dried branches.

The affected area is just 100m away from the dam’s spillway.

Without trees, the forest is unable to act as a giant sponge to “absorb” excess rainwater during the current wet spell.

Penanti assemblyman Dr Norlela Ariffin, who raised the alarm, warned that the barren patches on the site could also contribute to water pollution and flooding, with houses facing the risk of being inundated with mudflow.