RAIL TRANSPORT PLANNING AND INFRASTRUCTURE

SUBTOPIC: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)

What I learnt

From the first video, I learnt that traffic impact assessment (TIA) is important when doing developments. This assessment ensures that the developments done does not harm the traffic nearby. As a developer, they do not only think about their developments only, but also the surrounding community that may be affected by the developments. And if the developments are interrupting the traffics, the traffic consultant will need to propose measures to rectify this. Meanwhile, the second video on environmental impact assessment (EIA) is similar to TIA but focuses on the impact to the environment. Both assessments are important so that a quality town or developments are built that are not harmful to everyone and the nature.

Subtopic self-reflection

I want to know more about the impact of developments to environment when the assessment is not done properly, so I did some readings. A renowned hillside residential area, Bukit Antarabangsa which is home to some popular celebrities had a landslide in 2008 that causes luxury houses there to tear down. This raises safety concerns among the residents. According to a study by Kazmi et. Al (2017), one of the factors contributing to the landslide is the nature of Malaysia tropical climate, besides from the poor maintenance of the drainages at the hillside. Since developments at hillside is risky, proper EIA should be done to ensure the safety before proceeding with the development.

Overall reflection

Developments are beneficial to humans since it promotes the economic growth. However, humans should not be greed when doing these developments and neglecting the nature.