Beach Bunch President Rizan Latif (R) emptying out sand from the plastic bottles and cups before collecting them into the bags in a cleaning campaign earlier this year. The NGO will conduct an environmental impact assessment in its bid to get the internationally-recognised Blue Flag eco-label for Meragang Beach.
THE president of Beach Bunch has given an assurance that an environmental impact assessment (EIA) will be carried out before any development work is done in the non-government organisation's bid to get Meragang beach the internationally-recognised Blue Flag "eco-label" by the end of next year.
The beach in Brunei-Muara district will be the first of the Sultanate's five public beaches which the local environmental NGO is vying to develop over the next three years to be worthy of the coveted Blue Flag.
The Blue Flag emphasises on its stringent standards for environmental conservation and education, as well as the provision of facilities, services and safety for visitors to beaches and marinas.
Beach Bunch President Rizan Latif conceded that there are "potential complications" in developing Meragang beach.
"We do not know what is the current (environmental) situation there," he told The Brunei Times.
He explained that as Meragang beach was still "owned" by the Ministry of Development's Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (Jastre), the Beach Bunch were unaware if the beach was a habitat for endangered animal species such as if it was used as a turtle hatching site.
Therefore, an environmental impact assessment will be carried out prior to any development, said Rizan, who is an environmental consultant engineer by profession.
"EIA goes before doing any development project. That's the standard practice," he said.
The Beach Bunch president recalled that His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam highlighted in his titah delivered during this year's National Day on the importance of carrying out EIAs, particularly given Brunei's advocacy of environmental protection and conservation.
If any "environmentally-sensitive area" was identified on Meragang beach, then it has to be included into the development plan for the Blue Flag, Rizan explained.
"Either we can zone it or leave it as it is. It depends on the impact assessment," he answered when asked how Beach Bunch intended to protect these "environmentally-sensitive areas".
The Blue Flag bid received its first form of government backing when the Brunei Tourism Development Department presented a "Letter of Support" to the Beach Bunch last Tuesday.
The NGO is currently working on the "detailed planning" for Meragang beach, while preparing for a national level workshop hoped to convince Jastre to approve of the project, as well as garner additional support from stakeholders and potential sponsors.
If successful, Meragang beach stands to become the first Blue Flag beach in Asia, a status that is expected to draw tourists from all over the world to Brunei.
The beach in Brunei-Muara district will be the first of the Sultanate's five public beaches which the local environmental NGO is vying to develop over the next three years to be worthy of the coveted Blue Flag.
The Blue Flag emphasises on its stringent standards for environmental conservation and education, as well as the provision of facilities, services and safety for visitors to beaches and marinas.
Beach Bunch President Rizan Latif conceded that there are "potential complications" in developing Meragang beach.
"We do not know what is the current (environmental) situation there," he told The Brunei Times.
He explained that as Meragang beach was still "owned" by the Ministry of Development's Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (Jastre), the Beach Bunch were unaware if the beach was a habitat for endangered animal species such as if it was used as a turtle hatching site.
Therefore, an environmental impact assessment will be carried out prior to any development, said Rizan, who is an environmental consultant engineer by profession.
"EIA goes before doing any development project. That's the standard practice," he said.
The Beach Bunch president recalled that His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam highlighted in his titah delivered during this year's National Day on the importance of carrying out EIAs, particularly given Brunei's advocacy of environmental protection and conservation.
If any "environmentally-sensitive area" was identified on Meragang beach, then it has to be included into the development plan for the Blue Flag, Rizan explained.
"Either we can zone it or leave it as it is. It depends on the impact assessment," he answered when asked how Beach Bunch intended to protect these "environmentally-sensitive areas".
The Blue Flag bid received its first form of government backing when the Brunei Tourism Development Department presented a "Letter of Support" to the Beach Bunch last Tuesday.
The NGO is currently working on the "detailed planning" for Meragang beach, while preparing for a national level workshop hoped to convince Jastre to approve of the project, as well as garner additional support from stakeholders and potential sponsors.
If successful, Meragang beach stands to become the first Blue Flag beach in Asia, a status that is expected to draw tourists from all over the world to Brunei.
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