First public participation survey on the Kuiqi Bridge project

11.5.2.2 Analysis of Public Opinions

The mass public support construction of the project, considering that the construction of Kuiqi Bridge has a positive significance for development of regional economies while it facilitates the travel of local people as well. Presently, the local people come and go across the Minjiang River mainly by the small powerboat, which has low safety coefficient, especially in the flood season when there exists hidden safety hazards. Meanwhile, construction of the Project will add value to the land at both ends of the bridge and the convenient transportation can attract large amount of investments, which will propel development of the regional economies and the labour market.

(2) Issues worried by the interviewees

Interviewees within the range of demolition have concerns upon following issues:

1) Compensation after demolition. The interviewees universally worry that after the present houses are demolished, the compensation paid is not enough to buy new houses while their own economic status can hardly offer the high house-purchasing fee and pay the property management fee. In addition, they worry that whether the compensation committed by the government can be delivered to resettlers on time and in full. Therefore, they ask for direct contact with the government department in charge of demolition and resettlement to negotiate about the compensation.

2) The living after demolition. The formers who lose their land worry about their source of income, fearing that if they are resettled far away from their original places and they can not continue the farming they are presently engaged, and thus they are afraid that the living standard will drop. Especially the villagers of Linpu Village near the Bridge site, who are engaging in poultries and livestock currently, fear that once their farms are expropriated, they will lose their means of making a living.

3) Cadres and villagers of Kuiqi Village worry that the Kuiqi Bridge traversing the village will re-divide the village that is already considerable scattered at present, and thus the village will lose its integration while villagers’ daily lives and management will become less convenient.

4) Enterprisers in Linpu village are afraid that the newly built workshops have to be relocated as the Kuiqi Bridge crosses their workshops, which will affect the production and economic benefit of the enterprises.

5) Managers of the waterworks of Linpu Village worry that the construction of Kuiqi Bridge will degrade the water quality of the water intake, which will affect the quality of water consumed daily by the villagers of Linpu village and increase the operating cost of the waterworks.

11.5.3 Brief summary on public participation opinions

2) Issues put forward by the interviewees and proposed to take into consideration during planning and design of the Bridge include:

① When encountering the villages, the route shall roundabout the village as much as possible in order to occupy less farm land and demolish fewer houses while the village can be protected from being divided with less inconvenience will occur to daily lives of local people;

② It is suggested to avoid the historic sites and swamped land during planning;

3) Issues put forward by the interviewees and proposed to take into consideration during road construction include:

The construction site shall be reasonably arranged, with the concrete mixer, bitumen cooking facilities far away from the residential place; the turbidity of water inside the Minjiang River will increase due to construction of the bridge, which will cause increase of the operational cost of the Linpu Village Waterworks because of additional dose of chemicals, therefore, appropriate economic compensation by the Employer is suggested.

4) Issues put forward by the interviewees and proposed to take into consideration during demolition and resettlement include:

① The compensation for demolition shall be reasonable and direct negotiation on demolition between the Employer and resettlers is expected. Meanwhile, the compensation for demolition shall be directly paid to the resettlers;

② It is suggested to take into consideration the living habits and living demands of those resettlers and give them equal area of land for building their house independently;

③ It is suggested to give appropriate compensation to farmers who lost the land so that they can maintain the current living level, which has active meaning for social stability.

Public participation by the Church