Elephants, he said, would not move under a bridge or a major trunk road as evident from the construction of a bridge across the Sungai Segama in the 1980s.
That bridge, he said, effectively isolated elephant populations between Batu Putih and Abai.
“Elephants will not go under the bridge due to the noise and vibration caused by passing trucks and cars and it’s dangerous for them when crossing roads,” said Dr Goosens, whose centre works with the Sabah Wildlife Department.
State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun had said on Monday that the Public Works Department was working out an alternative plan for the proposed bridge near Kampung Sukau.
The state Cabinet, he said, had discussed the issue of the proposed bridge following concerns over wildlife conservation in Lot 3 of the Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary.
Conservationists have said that the project would also create repercussions on the movements of elephants in the area where a reforestation programme under Project Relief is being carried out jointly by Nestle and Sime Darby Foundation.
Sime Darby Foundation chief executive Yatela Zainal Abidin had also handed over a letter to Masidi to voice their concerns over the project.