The Tamavua Action Group is now urging the Government to appeal the High Court ruling dismissing the Stay of Execution Orders on the Great Han development project on the Tamavua Ridge along Princes Road in Suva.
The residents action group says the six-building development plan has never been subject to an Environment Impact Assessment nor does this plan have an Environment Action Plan.
The group says they remain concerned that the courts may not be fully informed of the risks associated with the development, and they are also concerned that the continued waiver of environmental requirements for the development sets a potentially damaging precedent for other major development
projects who may well now seek similar waivers of environmental requirements.
They say they continue to be disappointed that this case has been framed narrowly in terms of the additional floors on Buildings 1 and 2, as if the buildings themselves have satisfied the requirements of the Environment Management Act.
The Tamavua Action Group says this is not the case.
The Group adds that the Technical Review Committee in 2023 clearly explained the risks of proceeding without an EIA.
They say the geological risks are well documented and Princes Road, and Tamavua as a whole,
continue to suffer from severe traffic congestion and water shortages.
The Tamavua residents are also concerned that the case relies on assurances from the Mineral Resources
Department that the Court can safely ignore the risk of geological faults along the Tamavua-i-Wai ridge.
Engineers Fiji has made it clear in an analysis this month that the geological investigations undertaken by MRD are not technically adequate for the proposed development.
We have sent questions to the Minister for Lands, Filimoni Vosarogo on the geotech issues being raised by Engineers Fiji.
We are also seeking comments from the Environment Ministry on whether the ruling will be appealed and the issue regarding proper environmental impact assessment and consultations.
