She urged him to shelf the project pending a review.
Penang Heritage Trust (PHT) president Lim Gaik Siang said she became anxious after reading the 1,195-page environment impact assessment (EIA) report for the proposed Pan Island Link 1 (PIL 1) highway project and the sheer mammoth scale of the highway.
The PIL 1 is a 20km highway project under the RM47 billion Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), a state project to build highways, light rail transit lines and other modes of transport, expected to be financed through the reclamation of three islands.
During a question-and-answer session at the Penang 2030 Plan launch today, Lim said her sleepless nights stemmed from the fact that the four tunnels for PIL 1 would go through sensitive parts of the Penang Hill range, which is a mountainous area in the centre of the island.
Lim said adding to her worries was that these tunnels would cross three granite bedrock fault lines, with reports stating it might cause devastation to an iconic temple and a dam nearby.
She said besides concerns about the tunnel, she also found that PTMP would involve building elevated roads spanning 70km, which was the same length as the island, from coast to coast.
“I read the report more than 10 times. The more I read the EIA report, the more I could not sleep.
“This is despite it promising to shorten travelling time from 30 minutes to 15 minutes on PIL 1.
“While we are happy that the CM is concerned over the state’s green agenda, how many trees will be cut to make way for this project?
“Can we review the whole PTMP? Is there any other alternative?” Lim asked Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
Lack of space in Penang
In response, Chow said the present problem Penang had was the lack of space to build more roads and hence tunnelling was the last resort.
He said even the coastal Jelutong Expressway (now renamed in honour of former chief minister Lim Chong Eu) was built on reclaimed land, which shows how scarce land had been on the island since the late 1990s.
Chow said on the issue of tunnelling through granite fault lines, he urged all to remain calm as a statement explaining the matter would be released in “a day or two”.
He said the contractors were well aware that it was a granite area.
“So many other tunnels in Malaysia have been built in similar terrain.
“The statement will allow you to appreciate why this method of tunnelling (drilling and blasting) was chosen.
“Anyhow, best practices must be complied with when building this tunnel. Don’t frighten everyone by saying ‘one blow’, we will blow Penang Hill away.
“In English, there is a term, ‘inching our way’. That is what we’ll be doing during tunnelling, through controlled blasting, metre by metre, with concrete poured at every stop to secure the tunnel.
“Nobody wants to damage Penang with this project but it is crucial we have this project for the future.”
https://sync.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/08/25/catastrophe-in-penang-if-tunnel-works-hit-fault-lines-expert-warns/