Tanjung Bungah residents unhappy over sand dredging works

GEORGE TOWN: Residents and fishermen living near part of the Tanjung Bungah coastline are unhappy over sand dredging works in their neighbourhood for a RM10.8 million beach beautification project in the popular Batu Ferringhi beachfront.
They are staying along Jalan Wee Hein Tze which runs parallel to the affected area which covers some 500m.
Resident Rozita Ahmad, 46, who has been staying in the area for decades, was concerned for the safety especially of children and on the possibility of soil erosion.
She said a big gaping hole in front of her house also created an "eyesore" since sand dredging works started last June.
The authorities should monitor the situation to ensure the residents' grouses were looked into, the housewife told reporters when met today.
Fisherman Faizal Mohd Yusoff, 39, said the works being carried out affected the livelihood of trawlers and should be stopped immediately for the residents' sake.
Another resident, Muhd Danial Abdullah, 51, said they could not access the beach as heavy machinery transporting sand pass through the hilly route to the beachfront in Batu Ferringhi all day long and the works were a nuisance.
Penang Drainage and Irrigation department (DID) engineer Haslinda Mohd Hamran, meanwhile, gave an assurance the affected area would return to normal soon.
Answering queries by the residents at a meeting in Komtar, she promised to look into their concerns.
Tanjung Bungah assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu, who acted as mediator, hoped DID would do the necessary to address the problems.