Ameenee Magu EIA concerns addressed; drainage capacity will boost: Aslam
Planning Minister Aslam was summoned to the parliament on Monday and Henveiru West MP Hassan Latheef asked about the project's water system.
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By
Mariyam Umna Ismail
Planning minister Mohamed Aslam assured on Tuesday that the drainage system being established under the Ameenee Magu road project will increase its capacity by the time the project is completed, stating that concerns raised in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) regarding the drainage system of the road.
The road development corporation (RDC) started development of Male’s Ameenee Magu under the 'Male Street Scaping Project' in October last year. The EIA report on the project, which is being executed at a total cost of MVR 84 million, has flagged several issues.
According to the report,:
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Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has given its go-ahead for the project until it is finalised
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The project also drew criticism for allowing space to believe that the final designs of the sewerage system on Ameenee Magu have not been submitted with the EIA
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The road is congested and prone to flooding every time there is rain; hence, there were concerns among the residents that if proper drainage system is not put in place while developing the road, the purpose of the project will not be achieved at all
Planning minister Aslam was summoned to the parliament on Monday and Henveiru West MP Hassan Latheef asked about the project's drainage system. Responding to a question, Aslam said that by the time the project is completed, the drainage supply capacity of the road will increase in capacity.
Aslam said:
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At present, the drainage system on Ameenee Magu has been designed to "pump out water from a gravity flow from pumping stations"
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Currently, pipes built to flow water on gravity flow (pipes between 150 and 300 mm in diameter) will be enlarged to pipes that are 315 mm in diameter
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Pump stations that emit water (pipes between 160 and 280 mm in diameter) will be extended to pipes that are 315 mm in diameter
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More pump stations will be set up and pump capacity will be increased; the current capacity is 9 kW, which can be increased to 21 kW by the time the project is completed
"Then 1,000 cubic metres of water per hour will be discharged from these pump stations. Therefore, these details were not available at the time of the EIA, and the EIA consultant pointed out that they suggested that this issue be addressed properly. I believe that these works are going as per the advice," Aslam said.
