COUNTRY GARDEN PACIFICVIEW CONFIRMS ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE AND CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION, NOT SPECULATION ON CAUSE OF FISH DEATH
No major or sustained anomalies in water readings which could potentially point to the death of the fish
Johor Bahru: March 15, 2015 – Environment monitoring company Asian Environmental Solutions Sdn. Bhd., today said, “From a water quality perspective, we have been carrying out tests on a daily and monthly basis for the past year and there have been no major or sustained anomalies in the readings which could potentially point to the death of the fish. There could be quite a number of causes, including upstream pollution or a seasonal phenomenon known as plankton bloom.”
Last week saw media coverage over the ‘plankton bloom’ phenomenon which has also effected fish stocks and aqua-culture in neighbouring Singapore. Plankton bloom is a phenomenon that occurs periodically and cyclically, during droughts and dry spells such as is being observed in the Johor Straits currently. The phenomenon sees the plankton absorbing more oxygen from the water than normal, ultimately causing the fish to suffocate.
Speaking for Country Garden Pacificview Sdn Bhd, Datuk Md Othman, Executive Director said, “It is important to remember that CGPV voluntarily stopped work eight months ago, while we conducted a ‘Detailed Environmental Impact Assessment’ (DEIA). We did this voluntarily so that could be certain that we were working with the environment and not against it. In the planning of the project, we have invested heavily in research to understand every detail such as sediment flow and the hydro-dynamic-impact of our project’s shape, so that we could protect elements of the environment such as sea-grass. The DEIA, which covers the measures proposed to minimise or mitigate environmental impacts through integrated and workable solutions, reaffirmed that our guidelines and standards were compliant.”
“With the release and validation of the DEIA, we are only now beginning to prepare for full recommencement of work later in the year. When we do recommence, we will continue to be compliant to the guidelines and work well within the best-practice-standards. It is important to carry out a proper investigation by a marine specialist to try to ascertain the actual cause of death of the fish rather than make a speculative assumption without proper verification.”
Country Garden PacificView 