Residents in Shanghai, whose communities may become neighboring
blocks along a proposed maglev train route, are asking for more
time to evaluate the project, the China Youth Daily
reported on January 14.
According to a public notice posted on the official website of
the Shanghai Municipal City Planning Administration from December
29 to January 18, the cross-river maglev train route would extend
31.8 kilometers from Longyang Station in the city's eastern Pudong
New Area to the Hongqiao Comprehensive Transportation Hub. The hub
is now under construction in the western Changning District.
The length of the maglev train route is shorter by 3 kilometers
from the original plan considered last year. The new path, running
across the site of the World Exposition 2010 that flanks the
Huangpu River, is expected to connect the city's two airports – the
Hongqiao International Airport and the Pudong International
Airport.
"We are worried about the project which is going to be
constructed near our homes, because it has created controversy in
the past," Li Qing in alias from the Minhang District told the
China Youth Daily.
On January 7, more than 10 representatives from four residential
communities in the Minhang District expressed anxiety over the
negative impact of the project, especially regarding environmental
and security issues. A day later, the district government organized
a hearing among various representatives, engineers and
environmentalists. The noise, vibration and radiation had become
major concerns among local residents. They asked the experts to
show them the environmental assessment and security testing
results.
According to the China Youth Daily, some residents felt
dissatisfied with the proposed safe distance designated at 22.5
meters wide beside the new maglev train line. The distance is 2.5
meters narrower than the existing line that went into operation in
2002. In addition, the existing line was constructed using
protective forest cover, 150 meters wide, on each side. The
residents feel deeply worried about electromagnetic radiation
resulting from the new line despite repeated reassurances and
explanations from the experts. Some representatives asserted that
nobody really knew what harm the new maglev line may cause, so they
asked the engineers to carefully scrutinize the issue again.
An anonymous official from the Shanghai Municipal City Planning
Administration told the Southern Metropolitan News that
they had received a number of questions concerning the project,
mostly addressing noise and radiation issues. According to the
official, the planning administration will coordinate with the
environmental bureau and there is a possibility of making some
adjustments. He said they would keep the project's process public
and would consider prolonging the current issuance time of the
public notice.
China adopted the Temporary Measures Concerning Public
Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment in 2006. According
to these measures, the public should be informed of any possible
environmental impact caused by the project, via media broadcasts
and printed brochures.?Public hearings concerning these
projects should also host experts.
(China.org.cn by Wu Jin, January 16, 2008)