KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 —  A coalition of non-governmental organisations is urging the state government to prevent the proposed East Klang Valley Expressway (EKVE) project from cutting through Taman Rimba Ampang. 

The group, comprising Treat Every Environment Special (TrEES), WWF-Malaysia, Malaysia Nature Society (MNS) and Save Our Sungai (SOS), said the area, which was part of the Selangor Forest Reserve, provided over 90 per cent of water resources to Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya. 

TrEES founder Leela Panikkar said the water source was categorised as Class One according to the Interim National Water Quality Standard and could be consumed directly.

“If a highway is to be built next to a river, would the water still be Class One?” she said.

“The highway would also cause the area to be commercialised. More shops and houses would be build around it.”

She said the group was not against development projects but the authorities should reconsider the route to ensure it did  not encroach into the forest reserve.

MNS head of conservation Balu Perumal said the state government should maintain the forest reserve, which was gazetted in 2005.  

“The water rationing in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur recently has made us realise how important water sources 

are,” he said.

“This stretch of forest reserve is home to many endangered wildlife species, including Malayan tigers and tapirs. If we lose it, we might lose

the animals, too.”

WWF Malaysia’s conservation director, Sundari Ramakrishna, said the National Physical Plan-2 had categorise the area as a Rank One environmentally sensitive area and any development would affect the ecosystem.

The NGOs questioned the validity of the Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIA) by UKM Pakarunding Sdn Bhd, commissioned by the project proponent, EKVE Sdn Bhd.  

They had submitted a petition with more than 3,000 signatures during the public viewing of the DEIA.