KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 6 ― The Kuala Lumpur mayor has called off a proposed community garden on the part of a hillslope that directly affects a group of Bangsar residents.
The mayor's decision comes following protests from the Taman Weng Lock residents, who had in recent months raised concerns over fears of landslides occurring from the project.
Victor Low, the treasurer of the Jalan Riong Rukun Tetangga which covers the Taman Weng Lock area (also known as Taman Bangsar Pertama), said the residents' group's chairman had received a letter from the mayor on November 14 on the decision.
“The effect of the decision for us right now is the land that is directly affecting us will be safe,” he told Malay Mail Online when contacted recently.
Out of the existing 168 households in the Taman Weng Lock area that lies below the hillslope, 160 residents from 109 of them had signed a petition to protest the project.
In the October 12 letter sighted by Malay Mail Online, Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Seri Mhd Amin Nordin Abd Aziz referred to a petition of protest on August 8 and a subsequent August 24 engagement with residents of Taman Weng Lock and Taman Bangsar Pertama and who are nearest to the hillslope.
In the same letter, the mayor listed three parcels involved in the proposed “Kebun-Kebun Bangsar” community project on Tenaga Nasional Berhad reserve land in Bangsar.
For the first parcel measuring 1.44 acres between Jalan Tenggiri and Lorong Bukit Pantai, the mayor said it was “agreed” that no projects would be carried out by Kelab Kebun Bandar ― an implementing partner of the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) for the proposed community garden.
As for the second parcel measuring 2.29 acres located between Lorong Bukit Pantai to Lorong Bukit Pantai 4, the decision was for project partner Kelab Kebun Bandar to continue the implementation of the community garden which would involve technical works by DBKL's Civil Engineering and Drainage Department to improve the drainage system at the site.
The letter said studies on the soil structure had found that it was safe to carry out a community garden project, while also stating that the project could continue on the second parcel of the TNB reserve with Kelab Kebun Bandar required to comply with certain conditions.
For the third and final parcel of 3.4 acres between Lorong Bukit Pantai 4 until tower 32, its status will depend on the project's progress at the second parcel.
Low said the Taman Weng Lock residents' protest was specifically on the first parcel of land which was closest to and directly affects them, adding that the three parcels are on a vertical strip on the hillslope.
“I don't know why they never backed down because the fact of the matter is further up the hill it's going to [affect] everybody,” he said.
“But if the second parcel has a landslide, it would also impact us...If there's a landslide, the earth will be going into Taman Weng Lock, and the third parcel stands above Bukit Pantai 4 occupied by a lot of hillslope bungalows. Even the second one there are already individual bungalows, density there is a bit lower,” he said.
Low said the Jalan Riong Rukun Tetangga committee has decided to offer their help to the neighbourhoods near the second parcel, and share their experiences in mobilising residents for engagement with Kelab Kebun Bandar if required.
Engagement and fixing drainage
Ng Sek San, the Kelab Kebun Bandar chairman, confirmed DBKL's decision and said his group had initiated the engagement process about six months ago by directly approaching all immediate houses sharing a common boundary with the project site on the second land parcel.
Ng said the group had met with DBKL's engineers and had asked city hall to first resolve current drainage issues where water runs off the slope into the gardens of some of the bungalows there.
“There are existing drainage there, but some of the drains have been blocked because of no maintenance, so we are aware of it, so we are asking DBKL to do something first,” he told Malay Mail Online recently.
Ng said the slope for the proposed community garden project with “low-impact” land use is not dangerous, adding that geotechnical consultant Dr Toh Cheng Teik had been engaged to make a preliminary report on soil stability of the three parcels.
“His conclusion was if you are just using it for planting plants and garden flowers, he said the problem with soil stability is not so much with soil but drainage. But his conclusion is if we go in, the drainage will be better maintained and the slope will not fail,” he said.
In Toh's slope stability report dated August 22, the civil engineer made various observations involving the lallang-covered slope that was said to be fairly gentle with a 27 degree gradient, adding that it had remained stable for at least 40 years and will not have its stability affected by the community garden’s “negligible earthworks”.
“It is concluded that the proposed development will not have any negative impact on the slopes that have remained stable over time. If at all the improvements to drainage, the advantage of long term observation and maintenance that comes with occupying the land and the rectification to the gullies will be beneficial,” the report said.
Ng also said both DBKL and TNB's safety engineers had laid out conditions in order for the community garden project to proceed, noting: “There are many conditions mainly for public safety and we will abide to them, it's not a problem.”
In TNB's conditions for usage of its reserve land sighted by Malay Mail Online, the utility company only allows the erection of temporary structures 15 metres away from TNB transmission towers on the land, with digging and earthworks and use of heavy machinery only allowed with TNB’s approval and slope-cutting permitted 20 metres away from the towers.
Among other things, TNB also lists down permitted cash crops that should be planted 15 metres away from transmission lines and disallows plants, plant supports or fences exceeding two-metres in height, besides requiring a drainage system to prevent flooding of the reserve.
Ng said the Kebun-Kebun Bangsar project is aimed at connecting the three resources of land, financial support through grants and sponsors of the group, as well as mentorship in skills involving areas such as urban farming, permaculture, landscaping, medicinal herbs and beekeeping.
He said the group hopes to give out farm produce from the project to soup kitchens and an orphanage, while the medicinal herbs would be given to cancer patients.
“If the project is successful, we also hope to viral it by sharing our SOPs and volunteers and assist other communities in other localities to reclaim abandoned unused land and turn them into gardens, parks or farms,” he said.
The community garden project in Bangsar is one of the many projects under the Local Agenda 21 (LA21) Kuala Lumpur initiative where local authority DBKL, the community and the private sector work together for sustainable development.
DBKL's LA21 unit head Norazmin Adibah Othman told Malay Mail Online last week that DBKL and Kelab Kebun Bandar had made a site visit to determine the improvements required for the project site, confirming that it was still being studied.
“Whatever it is we will implement in the best way through scrutiny and implementation of works at the site. It’s still at the early stages,” she said.
