MOHD FARHAAN SHAH The Star 23 Jul 14;
JOHOR BARU: The huge Forest City project that will be taking shape off Tanjung Kupang, near here, will not damage the ecosystem between Malaysia and Singapore, state company Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor Sdn Bhd (KPRJ) said.
Before the reclamation works for the man-made island started, Country Garden Pacific View (CGPV) had conducted several tests on the possible environmental impact to the surrounding areas, said Datuk Md Othman Yusof, executive vice-chairman of KPRJ, one of the stakeholders in CGPV.
“We appointed a consultant to carry out hydraulic works to see whether the island will affect the water currents in the designated area.
“The test results proved Forest City will not have a negative impact on the environment,” he told a press conference at the KPRJ office in Danga Bay here yesterday.
“Furthermore, the first phase of the reclamation work is for a 49ha to build our showroom,” he said.
The 2,000ha project – expected to involve the biggest man-made island in the region with a size larger than Pangkor Island – had also raised eyebrows across the causeway.
The Singapore government was reportedly perturbed over the project, which would take three decades to complete, because of the massive reclamation involved.
Furthermore, Singapore said there were international obligations that both countries had to be concerned about.
At around the same time, the Department of Environment (DOE) issued a temporary stop-work order on the reclamation works, pending a detailed study.
RM600 billion Forest City to bring positive impact to locals
CHUAH BEE KIM New Straits Times 22 Jul 14;
JOHOR BARU: The RM600 billion Forest City development will bring more positive impact than negative ones to the people of Johor.
Kumpulan Prasarana Rakyat Johor (KPRJ) executive vice chairman Datuk Md Othman Yusof told a press conference here today that the development will bring direct and indirect returns to the state government which will then channel it to the local folk.
Md Othman said the taxes paid by those who occupy the man-made island will be used to build low-cost houses in suitable areas in Johor.
He said the project will also not affect the sea ports, namely, Port of Tanjung Pelepas but complement it.
Property values in the surrounding areas like Gelang Patah will also increase.
However, the stopwork order on reclamation works after several issues were raised had not only caused the developer Country Garden Property View to suffer financial loss, it may also shake the investors' confidence.
