The impact assessment of removing mangroves for a new road that will link Vailoa to Sogi must be done to find out how the environment is affected, says the Samoa Conservation Society.

The new road is part of the Ministry of Works, Transport and Infrastructure plans and it is stated in their five year strategic plan.

The construction of this road would require the clearing of a large amount of mangroves. The Samoa Conservation Society feels a proper impact assessment must be done.

SCS president James Atherton said it is also required by the law.

“Absolutely- the PUMA Act 2004 and the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations 2007 must be followed by all developers, including government, and may require a full EIA and public consultations, depending on the scale of expected impacts,” he said.

The plan for the new road was announced earlier this year and was confirmed to be part of infrastructure work when the strategic plan was launched a few months ago.

The reason for the new road according to the Minister for Works, Transport and Infrastructure is to combat the ever growing traffic.

The number of vehicles on Samoa’s roads has grown tremendously over the years with traffic jams now becoming regular.

The road which will come out in Sogi will require mangroves to be cut down and environmental organisations are not for the idea of cutting down the mangroves.

They have asked if an alternate solution could be found. For now, there has been no confirmation when the construction will begin as it still remains as a plan.

Mangroves have been identified as very essential to having a clean environment. Due to mangroves’ roots which anchor the plants into underwater sediment, nutrients and organic material from the tidal waves enriches the soils, giving mangroves the ability to store carbon, otherwise known as blue carbon.

Mangrove ecosystems are home to a myriad of species from marine life (fish, crab, shellfish, sea turtle, etc) to birds. The habitat serves as a nesting, breeding, and nursing ground for the plethora of local wildlife. As more and more mangrove forests are cleared, valuable habitat is lost.

Mangrove forests act as a physical buffer between marine and terrestrial communities. The trees protect the coastlines from severe weather events as well as slow down erosion. The mangroves provide valuable protection for those nearby communities that are prone to storms and are at risk of sea-level rise.