DEIA report for Pan Island Link Highway would not have been approved in US

GEORGE TOWN: The Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (DEIA) for the Pan Island Link 1 (PAN - 1) highway in Penang would have failed American regulators because there was no alternative option provided by the consultants.
Retired American academic Dr Lora Lucero (pix), who taught US environmental law at the University of New Mexico, said that the DEIA for the proposed RM8 billion highway was flawed from the conventional standpoint because it does not provide substitute options for the critics to ponder.
In the US, Lucero pointed out that most DEIA reports are accompanied by other options in case the original concept was rejected on various grounds.
Whereas in Penang, she is puzzled why the DEIA only offers one prospect only.
She said this at a press conference hosted by the non-governmental organisation umbrella group – the Penang Forum steering committee.
Earlier, the committee's luminaries Dr Lim Mah Hui, Khoo Salma Nasution, Dr Kam Suan Pheng, and K. Kanda Kumar had formally rejected the PAN 1's EIA report, saying it was fundamentally flawed and does not address serious misgivings about the social, transport and environmental impact.
Instead, the forum has reiterated their call for an independent audit of the EIA and to engage an independent consultant to verify the various issues raised.
Asked if the forum may consider legal action since they were adamant that the Penang Transport Master Plan was unsuitable for the state, Lim said that all options were on the table.
Later, Kanda said that it was difficult to fathom a legal course of action, as the developers of the master plan, have the backing of the state government.
Kanda said that the previous campaign to prevent the second phase of the Gurney Drive reclamation project off Straits Quay was approved despite an outcry from the civil society members here.
Lim said that the climate change factor must also be taken into account.
"The planners of the master plan need to re-look the original plan and come out with a more realistic and sustainable plan
He said that the forum remained committed in campaigning for a more sustainable public transport system which is more effective compared to constructing more roads.