Better balance between development and conservation with revised Maju, Gillman plans: Nature groups

SINGAPORE – The revised development plans for Maju Forest and Gillman Barracks are a good compromise between providing housing and preserving greenery, and also connect wildlife better than in original proposals, say nature groups here.

But redevelopment of any kind would still have an impact on biodiversity and habitats at both sites, they added.

Residents living near Maju Forest and Gillman Barracks had mixed feelings over the updated plans. While some felt that the changes struck a better balance between redevelopment needs and their concerns, others said they had hoped to be consulted on the revised plans.

These comments followed the Oct 28 announcement of revised plans for the redevelopment of both sites, which will now have more greenery but fewer new homes than in the initial plans released in July.

Movin Nyanasegaran, president of the Bird Society of Singapore, said the additional greenery that has been set aside is a “good compromise”.

While he felt the changes were not a massive step up for wildlife since initial plans had made allowances for fauna at both sites, he was happy to see more native-dominated forests retained under the revised plans.

Such forests, which are typically dominated by native fast-growing trees, are more suited to vegetation and insect communities that form the foundation of natural ecosystems here than forests filled with non-native plants, said Nyanasegaran.

He appreciated the move, especially because retaining more native-dominated forest in the Gillman Barracks site was something he had specifically suggested during engagement sessions with the Housing Board.

Under the revised plans, retained greenery at Maju Forest will also be designated as a new nature park, while green spaces at Gillman Barracks are set to be part of the upcoming Alexandra Nature Park to widen the greenery within the Labrador Nature Park Network.

Lester Tan, a member of the Nature Society Singapore’s conservation committee, said dedicating parts of both sites to nature parks is a good step as such parks are “more rustic than a manicured urban park”.

That means these spaces will be built more sensitively to consider different animals and birds in the area, he added.

More broadly, the revised plans will help to improve ecological connectivity compared with the earlier proposals, said Tan.

For instance, he noted, a wider green area in the southern part of Maju Forest will connect wildlife better than the tiny strip of land in the previous plan for the area.

Agreeing with this assessment, environmentalist Ho Xiang Tian said the larger and more contiguous greenery that will be retained in Maju Forest will serve as a useful stepping stone where wildlife can “rest” while moving across the ecological corridor.

This is crucial because the space available for wildlife will shrink further as Singapore clears more forested areas, and various species could be stranded when connectivity between green areas is disrupted, added the co-founder of environmental group LepakInSG.

As nature groups noted, biodiversity and habitats are, inevitably, negatively affected by redevelopment plans.

Tan pointed out that there are other forests with more conservation value than Maju Forest, like Clementi Forest and Tagore Forest.

“I would rather (have) the revised plan than shift the stress from one point to another (like Clementi or Tagore forests),” Tan added. “Keeping 10ha of Maju Forest strikes a balance – it is better than clearing two-thirds of it.”

The Government said on Sept 8 that there are currently no plans to designate Tagore Forest as a nature reserve, in response to a question in Parliament over whether the Government would consider granting the forest such protection.

Residents living near Gillman Barracks and Clementi’s Sunset Way, where Maju Forest is located, had different views of the updated redevelopment plans.

Some did not think the authorities went far enough to preserve greenery.

Nature guide Mark Lin, 34, who lives in Sunset Way, said he was disappointed by the revised plans, which felt to him like more of a negotiation of bits of land than a genuine effort to preserve more of the forest’s biodiversity.

Photographer Seow Mun Kong, 40, lives in Telok Blangah and often runs along the forest walk leading to Gillman Barracks. He said that while keeping more greenery is a step in the right direction, he would rather have the forest remain untouched as it is irreplaceable once cut down.

Hui-E Seeto, a Sunset Way resident of about five decades, was part of a group of residents who put together a proposal for Maju Forest to be retained entirely, for research and recreational purposes.

She said nature groups and advocates had been invited to a session where various options for Maju Forest and Gillman Barracks were discussed, but an invitation was not extended to residents of her group. While her MP did organise engagement sessions for residents, these did not cover the options discussed with nature groups, she said.

“Feedback on the options should comprise a diverse group, including residents, so that those representing various views can bounce ideas off each other,” she added.

For Telok Blangah resident Anna Yap, the revised plans for Gillman Barracks achieve a better balance between building homes and conserving nature.

The 37-year-old landscape architect, who attended two engagement sessions with representatives of public agencies, said such sessions helped people to understand the Government’s balancing act.

“It’s important to have engagements because planning can be quite top-down. Such sessions help to build ownership from the ground up. It means the planning process is longer, but it’s always helpful to hear everyone’s perspective,” she said.

Another Telok Blangah resident, Asif Hussain, 39, said he hopes the Government will conduct public consultations at an earlier stage for future redevelopment projects.