Wangsa Maju residents worry that slope clearance may cause landslips

Ravaged: The remaining green lung in Section 10, Wangsa Maju is being cleared for development of apartments, exposing a huge stretch of steep slope. (07/02/2014/S.S.KANESAN/The Star)

RESIDENTS of Section 10, Wangsa Maju, had a rude shock when they found out that the green lung in their area has been turned into a huge bare slope.

They are up in arms over the large-scale land clearing carried out in Bukit Wangsa since Feb 5 without any notification signage or hoarding put up.

“The residents are gravely concerned over this as it is the remaining green lung in the area. People enjoy a walk in Bukit Wangsa where there are some 200 species of birds, reptiles and small mammals.

“The site being cleared is also a Class 3 to 4 slope, and it is very near to our condominium’s swimming pool. We worry for our safety as this area is prone to landslides,” said student Aisyah Farhanah Mohamed, 25, who lives in Sri Ledang Condominiums.

She said residents in the area had attended an objection hearing with Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and the developer on Dec 24, 2012, at which they raised their concerns over the development of three blocks of 26-storey apartments.

Residents in Section 10, Wangsa Maju showing the memorandum they submitted to DBKL.

Following the objections, the apartments were reduced to 21 storeys but residents still felt that building the 700-odd units there would bring serious repercussions.

She said the residents had on numerous occasions in the past year tried to follow up with DBKL but were always given the runaround. The next thing they knew was that workers had bulldozed their way into the forest and felled the trees.

“When the clearing started at 1pm on that day, I made a call to DBKL’s One-Stop Centre and found out that although the developer was given the Development Order, they only submitted the building plan on the same day.

“How can they start felling off the trees before the building plan was even approved?” she queried.

She added that the residents had submitted a memorandum to DBKL and collected about 3,000 signatures objecting to the development.

Retiree Mohamed Salim Md Nizar, 51, said it was inconceivable that DBKL had allowed a high-rise development on the very location identified as an Environmental Protection Zone in the KL Draft Plan 2020.

“They violated their own guidelines. They have allowed 3.64ha out of the 4.45ha to be cleared without any reports on the social, traffic and environmental impact shown to the residents.

“We have asked for dialogue but our calls have fallen on deaf ears,” he said, also drawing attention to the bad traffic and low water pressure faced by residents over the years.

Another resident, Mohd Yasin Abd Karin, 39, highlighted that the development would worsen the already bad traffic in the area.

“This area has a high density as developments here are mostly high-rise, with five condominiums, a cluster of DBKL flats and a primary school.

“Traffic congestion is really bad during peak hours, sometimes I spend more than an hour just to send my children to their school which is only 3km away,” he said.

Forestry expert Lim Teck Wyn said the slope fell within Class 3 and Class 4, and the area was very susceptible to landslides.

“A major landslide happened in nearby Setiawangsa last year even though the slope was said to be well-engineered. Also, this place is not far from Bukit Antarabangsa and Highland Towers.

“The soil here is loose, unlike other parts of the Klang Valley.

“The developer is risking people’s lives, I challenge them to come and stay if they build the structures here,” he said.

He said the land was cleared without any notification to avoid a confrontation with the residents.

Representatives from DBKL and Setiawangsa MP Datuk Ahmad Fauzi Zahari visited the site last Friday upon residents’ complaints.

Azhar Kasim, special officer to the Setiawangsa MP, said they had requested for DBKL to issue a stop-work order immediately to make way for dialogues involving DBKL, the developer and residents on the matter.

“The project should proceed only when a consensus is reached. We are also shocked that the developer did not make any effort to inform anyone, not even the MP’s office,” he said.

DBKL representatives who were present said the Development order was given on Nov 13 last year while the earthwork permission was granted on Jan 23. They said DBKL would issue a stop-work order because the developer had failed to put up a signboard and hoarding, as well as organise dialogues with the residents.