Last November, bulldozers began clearing the trees located on a strip of green lung squeezed between two highways in Damansara, Kuala Lumpur. Weeks later, without prior consultation with condominium residents living next door, developers began constructing a RM6.7 million Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur project - a cemetery.

Desa Kiara residents have cried foul over this new cemetery - only separated from their high rise condominium by the narrow Sungai Penchala - principally because the government approved the project without consulting them.

But what is frustrating for the community is that not a single political leader met on the issue have spoken in favour of putting a hold on the project for a review.

Back in November, when residents began protesting, the then Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tengku Adnan Mansor insisted that the construction of the 5ha cemetery would go ahead.

Undeterred, the Desa Kiara Residents Action Committee continued to meet with a slew of other political leaders - from Segambut parliamentarian and former deputy land and cooperative minister Dr Tan Kee Kwong, to Kuala Lumpur Mayor Mohmad Shaid Mohd Taufek, Federal Territory Minister Mohd Isa Samad, and finally, staff within the office of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi - but nothing constructive seemed to have emerged from these meetings.

The community had also put together a document on the adverse impacts of the cemetery project, citing problems with destruction of the 5ha green lung, which previously acted as a buffer zone between Desa Kiara and the Bukit Kiara muslim cemetery.

Health hazards

This report was presented to the authorities, but it appears that government leaders were unmoved by complaints that the new cemetery project - set to introduce 11,000 graves into the area - will pose a number of health hazards.

First, the site borders Sungai Penchala. This raises the crucial question of water contamination, especially when squatter and longhouse communities downstream use the river for fishing and domestic needs.

As no environmental impact assessment was conducted into the site, the report said there is nothing to show that cemetery leachates will not contaminate the ground water and the water supply, and therefore pose serious health risks to the community.

The kind of contamination residents are concerned about, is the by-products of decay, such as possible release of bacteria and viruses - to be spread by water in the soil, water run-offs into the river, or carried by animals.

The possibility of water contamination is even more likely, since the ground level of the proposed cemetery is much higher than the river and its surrounding areas.

"Groundwater flows along the gradient water table. The high density of proposed burials and proximity of Desa Kiara to the new site means that contamination by water run-offs is likely to become a stark reality," the report said.

And even though the cemetery comes with a three-metre high retaining wall, drainage holes in the wall would inevitably allow by-products of human decomposition to leach into the river, it argued.

Located at a distance

"Modern cemeteries are located well away from residential areas. Within Malaysia, this recommendation is indeed made within the government's own Structure Plan Kuala Lumpur 2020.

"The risk of contamination and the spread of diseases is a real possibility. The federal territory should not only have concerns for its own citizens but for neighbouring citizens in Petaling Jaya, Shah Alam and the rest of Selangor where the contaminated waters will be carried as the Penchala continues on its course towards the sea."

And then there is the issue of residents being so much closer to viewing daily burials, as a result of not having a forested area in between to obstruct sight and provide privacy to the children's playground and the swimming pool - both now overlooking the cemetery.

The green lung also used to act as a biological filter for the smog and emissions resulting from vehicles plying both the Damansara Sprint highway and the Taman Tun Dr Ismail by-pass, tempering climate change and removing residents from direct onslaught of fumes and noise, the report said.

Residents, especially those residing on higher floors, are also affected by the stench from the cemetery, in which the forest previously filtered out, it added.

With the plan set to accommodate a tight 11,000 burial plots, this also leaves little room for landscaping.

Property decline

At press time, ground levelling work and the construction of the cemetery's retaining wall is near completion.

Malaysiakini

has yet to obtain a response from DBKL on the matter since last week, although its public relations personnel promise that a reply would be forthcoming.

Some residents have already moved out, while others argue that news on the proposed burial site next door, with no longer a green lung in between, have resulted in a gradual decline in property values and banks no longer interested to finance new sale and purchase agreements.

Property prices have apparently dropped by about RM30,000. Units that used to fetch between RM230,000 to RM280,000 prior to the controversial construction, have dropped to RM200,000 to RM250,000.

Despite the upsets, Desa Kiara's action committee told malaysiakini that they remain hopeful for a resolution through the prime minister's office.

Another meeting has been scheduled with officers in the PM's office, and the group said they will continue to push the government to agree to the following mitigatory measures:

  • Restore the original green lung and engage qualified experts to reinstate trees and vegetation.

  • Re-site the new cemetery to a larger, more sustainable area elsewhere - where there is greater land and fewer impacts on health and environment.

  • Reduce the assessment rates currently levied by City Hall in the area in view of the health and environmental costs suffered.