Sungai Pinang Flood Mitigation Project Phase 1 Half Complete – Zairil

GEORGE TOWN, Oct 14 (Bernama) -- Phase 1 of the Sungai Pinang Flood Mitigation Scheme (RTB) project here is 50.86 per cent complete.

State Infrastructure, Transport and Digital Committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the RM114.8 million project began on Sept 21, 2023 and is expected to be completed by Sept 20, 2027.

“Phase 1 of the Sungai Pinang RTB project is being implemented to reduce flood risks by providing protection against floods with a 100-year return period (100-year Average Recurrence Interval or ARI).

“The project is also expected to reduce the flood-prone area in part of the Sungai Pinang Basin by 10.15 per cent, as well as minimise damage to public infrastructure, residents’ property, homes, transport networks and other facilities,” he said in a statement today.

Earlier, he conducted a site inspection to review the project’s progress.

Zairil said the main scope of the project included improvement works along Sungai Pinang, including deepening and widening a 1,400-metre stretch of the river and constructing a 1,020-metre parallel drain.

He said the project also involved upgrading the drainage outfall system, constructing a piano key weir and building a pump house equipped with two screw pumps, each with a capacity of 2.0 cubic metres per second, on the river’s right and left banks, as well as an ancillary building.

He added that the Sungai Pinang Basin had a total catchment area of 51 square kilometres in the Timur Laut district, while the 3.2-kilometre-long Sungai Pinang served as the main drainage channel carrying water from the basin to the sea.

“Rapid development around the Sungai Pinang Basin has altered the catchment area, leading to increased ground surface levels and changes in surface water runoff,” he said.

“This has resulted in the existing drainage system being unable to accommodate high water runoff, especially during heavy rainfall, thereby increasing the risk of flash floods in the area,” he added.

-- BERNAMA