‘Safety should supersede profit at retention ponds’

A bird’s eye view of the Taman Desa retention pond in Kuala Lumpur. — Filepic

RETIRED senior civil servants from the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) are disappointed that their efforts in creating policies to protect the city’s water bodies from flooding are being reversed to benefit developers.

They are increasingly concerned about decisions to alienate land surrounding flood retention ponds, thereby overlooking recommendations and technical conditions that had been put in to protect flood retention ponds, mining ponds, lakes and rivers.