Nature lovers still have hope for Taman Melawati hill
THE view from the Taman Melawati Hill in phase 3 is simply breathtaking. Standing atop the hill and watching the raptors fly across as part of its migration process, one is struck by the beauty of nature.
However, the hillside view might become a thing of the past as the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) had given planning permission to develop the hill in Nov 2007.
The Save Taman Melawati Hill pro-tem committee, who organised the raptor migration watch, are still hopeful about saving the hill at the Appeal Board.
The view: Raptor watching might be a thing of the past if the Melawati hill is sacrificed for development.
Its committee vice chairman Dr Hamdan Mohd Salleh said that a hearing will held on April 14.
“We are disappointed that they managed to get approval from the Department of Environment, Department of Geosciences and Ikram (Public Works Institute of Malaysia).
“There was no proper Environmental Impart Assessment.
“They only did an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) for the area that covers 40 ha. Apparently only areas above 50 ha would be subjected to an EIA,’ he said.
Dr Hamdan Kamat Nordin, 58, who came to watch the raptors, said developments should be done wisely to match nature.
“I love mountain climbing and hiking and green lungs allow you to pursue this.
“I am not totally against development but you have new technologies that allow things to be built without destroying nature,†he said.
Hulu Kelang state assemblyman Saari Sungib, who also joined the raptor watch, said that the track record of the land should also be looked into.
“We have to look into the legal aspect of the land transfer process from being a government land to the developer.
“We also have to see the assessment made on this proposed hillside development together with the stability of the slope,†said Saari.
Selangor state executive councillor for tourism, consumer affairs and environment and Bukit Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong, also joined to watch the raptors’ migration.
According to ornithologist Mike Chong, 50, who has been watching the raptor migration at the hill for the past eight years, the commonly sighted raptors are Oriental Honey Buzzard, Grey Faces Buzzard Japanese Sparrowhawk, Chinese Sparowhawk and Black Buzzard.
He said the migration process is usually between early March and April.
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