Residents object to beach plan

Flooding and high seas are two of the threats facing a planned beach facility in Apia.

And this worries residents in the area. They say the government should reconsider its plan to construct a manmade beach there.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea because the risks may be too high,” said Seumanutafa Tiavolo, the high chief of Vaisigano.

“We’ve been living here our whole lives. One of the struggles we have been facing our whole lives is flooding especially during the wet season and I believe this beach will make it worse.”

Seumanutafa said that there were times that even the seawall could not stop waves from reaching some of the houses at the Vaisigano area.

“We don't have a problem with having a beach,” he said. “What we are more concerned about is the impact it would have on us in terms of the waves.

When it gets rough, we will not be safe here at all.”

The opinion of residents in the area were sought yesterday following Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi’s announcement about the construction of the beach plan.

He said the government purposely stopped people from carting away sand because of this project.

“This project is government’s efforts to provide spaces for people to relax during the evening and night,” Tuilaepa said.

“There is so much which can be done along this area to attract people.

“One can sell ice cream there, play musical instruments like a piano there and it can be a play area for the family.”

Tuilaepa said his dream is to make that area rival beachfront townships like Tahiti and Noumea. He said a town without a beachfront is ugly.

But Seumanutafa is worried. He feels that the construction of the beach will be dangerous for the nearby wharf as well. “It will make the port even shallower,” he said.

Seumanutafa said many of the villagers were unaware of the plan to construct the beach where it is.

“We only heard that a restaurant and a few shops are to be set up,” he said.

“We didn’t think that they were putting up a beach.”

It was only last month, Seumanutafa said, t h e government gave out a consultation paper for which the villagers were asked to give their concerns about plans for the town area.

“But we didn’t see anything about this plan,” he said.

“We thought it was something to protect us from the waves because the seawall doesn’t help especially when there are cyclones.”

Reverend Utufua Naseri, of the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa in Apia, shared Seumanutafa’s concerns.

“The only questions are will the beach be there for long and will it be safe for swimming?” he said.

“This is also an issue because there are sea creatures like sting-rays and sharks around that area.

“It’s too risky however if the government is to go through with the plan then they should look at the impact first before they move to the next step”.

That was not the only concern of Reverend Naseri. “If we look at the location of this beach, about three churches are near it,” he said.

“The government should insist on making rules for it because some tourists do not even care if they go to the beach on Sundays.”

“We are a country founded on God.” But not everyone is opposed to the plan. Some welcome it.

“I’m all for the government and their efforts to encourage tourism,” said business owner, Graig Meredith.

“The government wants to promote Samoa and it’s a very good idea however I do hope that they make an environmental impact report for long term sustainability so that no questions will be asked.

“Everything costs money however it’s very important that they also look at the conditions before they set up the beach."