Proposed land use plan for Anse Lazio |01 August 2017

Praslinois have one more month to give their views

Praslinois have an extra month to submit their views on the newly proposed land use development plan for Anse Lazio.

This was pointed out in the last public consultative meeting which was held on Saturday at the Baie Ste Anne community centre.

Present for the discussion were landowners themselves, various stakeholders and a few members of the community.

Much work had been done after the first public consultative meeting held in December last year and a proposed land use plan has been drafted with the collaborative inputs of landowners themselves.

The plan, which shall serve as a guideline for future developments in the area, takes into consideration the sensitivity of the micro ecosystem of the area which includes river catchments, marshes, varied topography and terrain, as well as the presence of coco de mer plants.

Attendees could learn about the key infrastructural projects such as water and electricity supplies, and road diversion.

Certain development guidelines were also proposed to ensure that the beauty of the pristine environment of Anse Lazio is preserved, as per the demand of the landowners themselves. Examples are the height of buildings which should not exceed tree level, colours of buildings and materials used for construction which should blend very well with nature.

Attendees had the opportunity to voice out their concerns among which are queries about the location of the proposed centralised sewerage plant which is currently not defined, whether this proposed development plan for Anse Lazio has been introduced in reaction to a proposed project or whether proposed projects have been denied permission to proceed due to this new proposed plan.

Many concerns were raised by the attendees with regard to the best practices to manage the various species on various properties, due to the fact that certain species are protected by law and others not. As advised by the representatives of the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change the proposed land use plan includes certain guidelines for the landscape and seascape development. Upon submission of their project plans, the developers will have to submit a landscape plan and the environment department will advise on best practices and which plants should be conserved and be incorporated in the project, on a case to case basis.

One landowner from the Cherimont, a nearby area, also pointed out her constraints about not having road access to her property after the construction of Lemuria Resort. She thus solicited the possibility of considering extending road access to Cherimont in the road diversion plans.

Attendees were also curious to know what will happen to the proposed road diversion plans should the landowners refuse to have the road pass on their properties.

Whether PUC will consider the introduction of a new sub-station to meet the higher demand for electricity that will arise from new developments was another concern raised by the attendees. Already there seems to be an issue as almost each day there is power failure for a few hours during the day.

Following an article in the “Today in Seychelles” newspaper on the same day, whereby one of the landowners shared the approved relocation project of his existing restaurant as well as aspirations to convert his existing house into a guest house and build additional rooms, queries were raised about whether this particular landowner had submitted to the various guidelines relating to developing land in Anse Lazio.

The chief executive of the planning authority mentioned that currently there is no moratorium on any development at Anse Lazio; any land owner wanting to develop their property will need to follow the normal procedure just like anyone else and each applicant will be considered on a case to case basis until the final land use development plan for Anse Lazio comes into place.

The proposed plan will be on display at the Baie Ste Anne and Grand Anse community centres for a period of one month, within which the public should feel free to express their views and concerns about it, after which it will be submitted to cabinet for consideration.

Text: Nadia Bedier

Photo: Romano Laurence