A DAP lawmaker has reminded the Penang government not to depend solely on Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIA) reports as the benchmark to approve projects, especially those that raise environmental concerns.
 
The state must at all times listen and address public concerns on environmental issues impacting Penang, Tanjong Bungah assemblyperson Teh Yee Cheu said today.
 
Teh expressed concern that the only seagrass bed in Penang and the second largest in the peninsula after Marambong in Johor, would be wiped out by a reclamation exercise that the state government is considering.
 
"The DEIA report is more of a document containing a lot of technical terms that are not easy for the common folk to digest, understand or even oppose it.

"Hence, it tends to be overlooked or approved," explained Teh, who has been dubbed the 'Green YB' for his efforts in defending the environment.

Teh was responding to the statement by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng (left) on Monday that he was running a government and had to make decisions based on facts, not emotion.
 
Lim said so when asked at a press conference how the Penang government intended to address environmental concerns over a reclamation exercise involving the middle bank - covering 125 acres of seabed - located between the first Penang Bridge and the Sungai Pinang river mouth.

The area is home to at least six types of seagrass that feed marine species such as turtles and dugong, but is now under threat as the state development arm, Penang Development Corporation, has decided to reclaim it.
 
The state has begun to request for proposals on consultancy services for the reclamation, an exercise already included in the 2007 Penang Structure Plan.
 
At the last state assembly sitting, Teh had asked that the area be preserved as an ecological site, with heritage status.

For him, the Pakatan state government should correct the "mistakes" made by the previous BN administration.
 
"Although the state government can defend its decision to begin the reclamation study, but if you read between the lines, it reflects the kind of development model and mindset it has adopted.
 
"If you think the sustainability of the environment is important, then you would have reservations or objections to the reclamation project," Teh said.
 
He added if the state wanted to stand by the development project, then it has to justify it.
 
He urged the state to reveal the details of the request for proposal, to show that the conservation of the seagrass bed is part of the study.
 
"Compared to bald hills, the seagrass bed is not seen easily but I will continue to create awareness in the public to protect it," Teh asserted.
 
To show his disgust at the hill infamously known as the "botak hill", in Bukit Gambier, Teh had shaved his head in front of journalists near the area on New Year's Day, as a sign of protest and a call to preserve the state's green lungs.
 
Now he plans to visit the middle bank again, his fourth trip so far, at the end of this month to bring attention to the vulnerability of the area.
 
‘National treasure’
 
Meanwhile, the state executive councillor in charge of environment, Phee Boon Poh, recalled that former Chief Minister Dr Lim Chong Eu had planned to develop the middle bank as a central commercial district of the 21st century, to create a township.
 
It was the previous BN government that iincluded the reclamation exercise as part of the structure plan, Phee (right) told a press conference yesterday.
 
Asked why the current government did not want to review the structure plan, Phee's response was somewhat similar to Lim's.
 
"Sometimes, we do things not according to our desires but based on research and studies," he said.
 
He then admitted that in principle, the government wants to reclaim the middle bank, as it could be a new land bank to be used for development and to regulate hydro flow.
 
Phee said he was aware of the existence of the seagrass bed and even told the media that it is "a national treasure".  
 
"We have a reason for asking for consultancy on the issue. If we don't care about the seagrass bed, we can just go ahead and reclaim the area. The consultant will look into all aspects, including the seagrass," Phee said.
 
He added that the state had been monitoring the issue and that was why concerned citizens like Teh had come out to voice out their opinions.
 
On Teh's proposal to preserve the area, Phee said a study still needed to be done before the state could act.
 
"That's why we are getting the consultant to come in. We need to do this if we want to talk about marine conservation," Phee said.
 
"The state government had also engaged a consultant to prepare a state-wide hydro-flow plan four to five years ago and we are now seeking a second opinion on it," he added.