Neom planners reportedly fear its huge mirrored structure called The Line will kill a 'significant number of birds'

Beatrice Nolan
Updated ·2 min read
1
The Line, NEOM
A rendering of The Line, part of Saudi Arabia's Neom project.NEOM

  • Neom planners are worried The Line will kill a large number of birds, The Wall Street Journal reported.

  • The futuristic mirrored structure is on a migration route used by billions of birds.

  • The Line comprises twin 1,640-foot-high towers 656 feet apart.

Neom planners seem worried that the megaproject's mirrored "horizontal skyscraper" will kill a "significant number of birds."

According to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, the concerns relate to the location of The Line, which is on a migration route used by billions of birds.

In planning documents, designers wrote that it was "inevitable that a significant number of birds will perish," illustrating their concerns with a drawing of a dead northern flicker, per the report.

In a February promotional video for Neom, chief development officer for The Line, Denis Hickey, said he saw the project as an "opportunity to create a better model for a city to interact with the landscape and nature and the environment."

He said developers believed "The Line is going to be an example to the rest of the world."

Plans for The Line are already architecturally challenging.

The structure is designed as twin 1,640-foot-high mirrored towers set 656 feet apart. According to Neom's website, it will also have no roads, vehicles, or emissions and run on 100% renewable energy.

Plans for the glossy city have reportedly been scaled back in recent months.

The Line was originally planned to accommodate nine million people by 2030. However, a recent report from Bloomberg said this estimate has been lowered to fewer than 300,000 people by that date.

Saudi officials have been insisting the project is on track despite reports to the contrary.

Faisal Al Ibrahim, the Saudi economy minister, last month told CNBC there was "no change in scale."

Representatives for Neom did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider