Environmental impact screening for urban land use transitions - a perspective from developing a hill land development in Penang Island and shaping community acceptance

Abstract

The current rate of urbanisation is unprecedented in human history, particularly in Malaysia’s densely populated areas. Natural constraints and hazards are frequently ignored in this informal and sprawling urban growth, exposing the population to these hazards. Deforestation, water catchment loss, extinction of protected species and plants, soil erosion, landslides, water pollution, sedimentation, and downstream flooding have all resulted from inadequate environmental mitigation. Hence, this research quantifies and assesses the environmental and social impacts of hill land development on the affected areas. The community’s opinion on such growth and environmental mitigation measures will be assessed and evaluated at a study site on Penang Island, Malaysia. Environmental Impact Screening (EIS) was conducted by distributing questionnaires to affected residents and businesses, with 69 respondents. Descriptive statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package (SPSS), followed by a thorough elaboration on the pros and cons of expanding this steep land by considering social, economic, and environmental consequences. From the evaluation, most respondents were opposed to hill land development that can harmed community’s ecosystem. As a result, numerous efforts have been made to reduce community and environmental impacts. This study enables stakeholders to assess the environmental impacts from this type of developments and conduct necessary steps to mitigate or eliminate them.