BY ANASATHIA JENIS
PADAWAN: The seasonal floods made worse by the construction of the Bengoh Dam in 2007 may have forced some residents in several Bidayuh villages here to leave the area.
But those who stay have their own story to tell of the boon Bengoh Dam’s construction has been to them.
Wek Pauh, 48, a resident in Kampung Sting, which is a 20-minute boat ride from Bengoh Dam and then a 30-minute trek to the village that comprises 22 houses, said he chose not to relocate because he did not want to leave his family land from which he earns his livelihood too.
“I love this land. I can grow padi, pepper, lemongrass and galangal, These crops are purchased by those living around the area,” he said when met by Bernama recently.
Apart from the fertile land, the villagers can now earn a side income from tourists who come to the area to carry out recreational activities and experience a village lifestyle.
Wek Pauh, who also runs a homestay and boat service, said many come to the area to swim in the waterfalls and enjoy the natural landscape too.
Another villager Timis Bangai, 38, said before the dam’s construction, it was hard to travel to the city, especially to seek medical attention or send their children to school.
Many a time the children had to miss school due to heavy rains and floods as well as wild animals in their path in the forest.
The housewife said once villagers including her parents had to walk for seven hours to bring their produce to Kampung Bengoh to be sold in Kuching.
“Now, we don’t need to walk for hours anymore, we can use the boat and reach our destination in roughly 20 minutes,” she added.
Another resident, Nol Bungai, 35, said the building of the dam had attracted many tourists to come to the area and thus, helped him earn extra income and improved his family’s standard of living.
Besides running a boat service, we can also serve as tourist guides, he said.
A number of residents from the affected villages who were relocated to the Bengoh Resettlement Scheme (BRS) namely Rejoi, Semban, Taba Sait and Pain Bojong also make use of the dam to carry out tourism activities such as providing boat service packages.
The Bengoh Dam is capable of storing 114 million cubic metres of water with a catchment area of 127 square kilometres intended as part of a water supply project for the needs of residents in the city of Kuching and surrounding districts.
The project worth more than RM300 million commenced in 2007 and was fully completed in January 2017. – Bernama
