Dust pile or unusual view?

This is what some Woodlands folk wake up to

THE hills are rising off Woodlands Road.

There are already two big piles of granite and sand, and a third is slowly growing.

From the 14th storey of an HDB block located about 1km across the street from the hills, you can look out and see the two giant piles of rock at eye-level.

Talk about a room with a view.

But some residents are not happy with what they see.

They miss the greenery.

And the growing piles of rock and sand have created dust problems too.

Human resources trainer Andrew Wong, 48, who lives in a condominium across from the hills said: 'It used to be so nice and green with the trees. Now it's just brown and grey. It's very unsightly and when the wind blows from that direction, there is so much dust.

'It is very inconvenient because we always have to keep cleaning,' he said.

Mr Wong is not alone.

Several residents living in the HDB flats across from the hills also expressed concern over the amount of dust in the area.

They said the two mountains of rock first appeared about two years ago.

Housewife Jennifer Thue, 37, said: 'I don't get to enjoy the breeze because I don't open the windows in the kitchen and at the back very much anymore. It just gets very dusty.

'My husband has a sensitive nose and he seems to be sneezing more often now, and when that happens it means I have to clean some more.'

She added that she was also worried about her young sons, aged two and four, because they have a slight case of asthma and the dust could affect them.

Another family is even thinking of moving to a new home.

They just can't take the dust anymore.

Madam Shanti Pushpa, 43, a housewife, said she and three of her four children have developed sinus problems.

She said: 'I'm especially worried about one of my daughters because she sleeps in front of the window and in front of a fan. The fan gets dusty very quickly.

'Previously, I used to clean the fan once in two weeks. Now, I must wash the fan every day.

'My husband and I think it's not so good for health. Even my sinus is getting affected nowadays. If it gets worse, we want to move house.'

The hills are only temporary, though - the result of a defence project.

The Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) is building Singapore's first Underground Ammunition Facility (UAF), which is slated to be completed in 2005. (See report above.)

The rock piles are the result of excavation works being carried out deep underground.

DSTA's division manager Mr Tay Leng Chua said: 'The time constraints faced by the removal contractor have resulted in a temporary stockpile of granite.

'This stockpile will be removed at the end of the UAF development.'

Although details have not been finalised yet, he said measures would be taken to minimise air and noise pollution.

He said: 'We are taking many precautionary measures to reduce as much inconvenience as we can.'

However, not all residents are bothered by the man-made hills.

Some in fact like the unusual view.

Taxi driver Mr Simon Ng, 42, said he isn't too bothered by the dust because he had a maid to clean the flat.

On the granite hills, he said with a laugh: 'I don't find it unsightly. It's unusual and it is a view that residents in other parts of Singapore will not be able to see.'



Top secret facility first of its kind

THE Underground Ammunition Facility (UAF) located at Jalan Gali Batu is the first of its kind in Singapore.

The facility is a project by the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), which is a statutory board under the Ministry of Defence.

The UAF is built beneath what used to be a quarry and will be used by the Defence Ministry to sort and store ammunition.

By building it underground, less space is required and land is freed up for other use.

The exact information on how the UAF is being built is kept secret for security reasons.

But if the facility were to be built above ground, it would require land space about the size of 400 football fields.

The project is expected to be completed in 2005.


(Source: By Tan Mae Lynn, The Electric New Paper, April 29, 2003 Tuesday)

 

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