what kind of artificial standards better than the natural beach?

Tg Aru project to set new standards

Published on: Thursday, November 20, 2014

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KOTA KINABALU: The multi-billion ringgit Tanjung Aru Eco-Development project (TAED) aims to set new green building standards in sustainable development for Sabah. "This includes even making sure that the public view of beach from the approach road (Jalan Mat Salleh) is not obstructed," said TAED Executive Director, Datuk Victor Paul.
"I remember when Tengku Adlin wanted the design of the Likas Sports Complex many years ago to have a road facing straight at a sea view," recalled Victor at a briefing.
It is very important that the horizon sea view from the beach is not blocked from the main approach road. I am against any castle moat-like design that psychologically put barriers in people's mind that hinder their view of the horizon, sea and beach and sense of freedom to roam around the foreshore," stressed Ho recently.
Ho and Shareda President Francis Goh are private sector representatives of the State Central Board. Goh called for opportunities for local developers to participate in the development planned.
Property lawyer Christopher Chin, the legal advisor to Shareda and President of the Sabah Sailing Association unreservedly backs the project as it provides berthing facilities for yachts and amenities for youths to practise and excel in sailing.
"If you want to know whether Tanjung Aru Beach has changed and deteriorated over the years, I can tell so as I was there over many weekends for years for sailing activities.
From pulling up anchors I can tell you what is beneath the once abundant pristine sand is all mud and it smells," Chin told the gathering at the briefing.
Chin's testimony at the briefing with offer of proof contradicts the claim by activists that the beach has not undergone deterioration.
Paul said the design for the Fisherman's Wharf would help to protect the new beach from wave erosion just as well as the mangrove replanting at the other end of the beach to minimise pollution from the Petagas River.

where got approval and yet started with much things under the bridge.

page 50 of draft KKLP2020 - written statement only shows a smaller area of TAED.

Dialogue on 8 Nov 2014

Evaluation and Q&A on TAG2.0 Dialogue on Tanjung Aru Beach
After attending the TAG2.0 Dialogue at the Tanjung Aru Restaurant, it is now for the public represented by TAG2.0 to put forward more questions to the Sabah State Cabinet on the proposed TAED on Tanjung Aru Beach.
The dialogue was very well attended but the panel lacks the power to confirm any thing except to give us more information.
Mr Lionel Lau of TAEDSB did not mention anything about the reclamation of 444 acres of seashore and the sea.
It was Bernard Lai of WWWF who told us that the project would include 9 meter deep of the reclaimed sea hence likely increase the land level in seashore including the land where the ancient trees to something like 4 feet of soil killing all the existing old and irreplaceable valuable trees.
I hope the TAG2.0 would bring our resolutions of the Dialogue to the State Assembly on Tuesday and make a presentation to the Assemblymen.
Many more questions need to be asked as follows:-
1. Legal Status
1.1 What is the legal status of the TAED project as far as contracts with the various parties concerned.
1.2 As it was launched by the Prime Minister on 16 September, 2013, can the State Government cancel the TAED project without paying any compensation to those who might have signed some Agreements?
1.3 Has TAEDSB paid all the RM100m to the land owners with titles on the project site?
1.4 Is any part of the TAED project being offered in the market to potential buyers and stakeholders?
1.5 What is happening to a few hundred of acres of State land in project site?
1.6 Has the State Government via the land & survey department made any offers of the state land to TAEDSB?
2. Malaysian Airports Berhad
2.1 Has DHI consulted the Malaysian Airports Berhad as the KKIA is so near to the project site in its EIA report?
2.1.1 If DHI has consulted with MAB, what is the view of MAB?
2.1.2 As we do not know how water flows in the possibility of flash flood, has DHI consider that a valley would be in the runway as it is between the Kepayan hills and the upraised reclaimed TAED site? This is the worst scenario that there are 8 water outlets to the Tanjung Aru Beach including Sembulan and Petagas rivers at both ends of the project site. The dredged channel can be blocked at times and worst when high tide and very heavily rain occurs.
2.1.3 How can it be guaranteed that another minor useless project like TAED can destroy very valuable assets such Tanjung Aru Town and the Airport and who would pay for such losses when such a disaster can arise when TAED itself is a disaster?
2.1.4 What would happen if the TAED for whatever reason is abandoned, the KKIA would be badly affected.
2.1.5 Lionel told us that the abandoned property in Borneo Hotel could not find a buyer because of its close vicinity of the KKIA. So is there an intention that someone would prefer to move the KKIA elsewhere so that TAED would fetch more commercial value? Is it a ‘clever’ deal to find the reason to move the KKIA elsewhere once flooded by the development of TAED as it is with massive reclamation?
2.1.6 Is it in the plan of TAED that once KKIA is moved, what is there to stop the greedy people to grab that massive airport prime land?
3. Prince Philip Park
3.1 Lionel claimed that the Prince Philip Park would be doubled in size giving the message that the people would be benefited with that bigger area.
3.2 Prince Philip Park should be renamed Prince Philip City Park with a much bigger area including the existing site plus all the state land in second and third beach plus the former Government housing land and the School which should be about 300 acres out of the proposed 700 acres including the reclaimed sea land..
3.3 All the state land acquired by TAEDSB for TAED should be returned to the public domain.
3.4 Please don’t use PPP slightly increase in land area to justify the project to its original format.
4. Land compensation
4.1 How much of the RM100m of socalled compensation had been paid out now?
5. DBKK’s lack of fund to maintain the Prince Philip Park
5.1 I believe that DBKK had requested repeatedly for fund of say RM8m to upgrade the PPP, but was it declined?
5.2 I also am told that RM8m would be used to top up the inland of the seashore where the trees are standing to avoid flooding and likely up to 4 feet of soil. I believe all the old trees would die due to rotting of the roots once covered by 4 feet of soils
6. Maintenance annually with RM45m
6.1 Where would such RM45m come from with TAED if RM8m was not forthcoming?
6.2 Is it just an inducement to proceed with the project?
6.3 We want to see such guarantee of RM45m each year for the next ten years.
7. Public forums
7.1 After the launch of TAED on 16 September, 2013 by Prime Minister, the Government promised that many public forums would be conducted but such forums were simply non existent except the dialogue on 8th November, 2014.
7.2 Benoy- the Architect - was there to present a paper in Sutera Pacific Hotel on TAED for civil servants but I was only allowed in if I paid the expensive fees. That conference was titled “Liveable City Kota Kinabalu” without stating the organizers in December 2013.
7.3 Lets have a public forum in the City’s Merdeka Padang after a presentation by TAG2.0 in the Assembly sitting.
8. Planning and development Approval
8.1 Is Taed site zoned commercial in KKLP2020 draft?
8.2 KKLP2020 only showed a much smaller area for TAED, not 700 acres.
8.3 Has any TAED development plan submitted to DBKK for processing?
8.4 Has the Central Development Board consider any such proposed project?
8.5 Is the EIA report as submitted to Environment Protection Department [EPD] really as Draft?
8.6 If it is only draft copy, why call the public for views?
8.7 Why EPD never replies to submission of comments on the EIA report by DHI submitted by me and others?
9. TAED and TAEDSB
9.1 The Sabah Government must be transparent with this set up headed by a non civil servant if TAED and TAEDSB are both owned by the State.
9.2 Who is this Victor Paul - a civil servant heading State bodies?
9.3 Who had appointed Victor Paul?
9.4 Should not Victor Paul to be charged under any law including OSA for accepting a civil position?
10. Erosion and coastline degradation
10.1 Would TAED and TAEDSB secure accurate satellite pictures of the Tanjung Aru Beach coastline since 1980s from a company in Singapore to confirm that erosion has taken off the coastline of 50 meter for the past 40 or 50 years? The suspected or alleged erosion of the coatline of TAB was worst after Sinsuran area in KK was reclaimed in the 1980s due to the equilibrium adverse of the said coastline around Kota Kinabalu as waves are diverted to other areas in the west coast zone. It is believed the beach of Papar had been adversely eroded in the recent decades.
11. Other areas
11.1 If the State Government is not prepared to move this TAED project elsewhere in Sabah’s west coast, then it is strongly suspected that KKIA is the target for it to be moved elsewhere to give TAEDSB thousands of acres of prime land in KK. The previous proposal to move KKIA to Kimanis was aborted and again on public complaint.
11.2 Eyesore area in Tanjung Aru water village would be more suitable to have this “TAED” project and to upgrade Tanjung Aru Beach without an ecological disaster.
12. Guarantees before award of the construction of the TAED
12.1 Guarantee all the old irreplaceable valuable trees are not destroyed with a price tag on each tree to be marked.
12.2 Gazette to show the area of 300 acres to be for the Prince Philip City Park before the project starts.
12.3 Guarantee that the area around TAED be flood free and pay all damages should such arises.
12.4 The commercial areas should be limited to the areas as purchased by Land & Survey Department in compensation on behalf of TAEDSB.
12.5 Public access is FOC forever.
Prepared by Joshua Y. C. Kong 8th November, 2014