STOP pointing fingers and start looking at solutions on how to stop irresponsible quarters from polluting our rivers, said The Malaysian Water Association.
“Just remove illegal factories built near our rivers. As for the legal ones, find a suitable place and relocate them,” its executive director Lee Koon Yew told FocusM.
The last few months have seen Klang Valley experiencing water supply disruptions due to pollution in Sungai Selangor treatment plants.
The recent case was two weeks ago, when three treatment plans and one in Rantau Panjang were closed after an 8 TON (Threshold Odour Number) odour pollution was detected.
The move affected millions living in Petaling, Klang, Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Langat and Kuala Selangor.
The latest pollution was alleged to have been caused by Indah Water Konsortium but the latter defended itself saying its waste was dumped illegally by unknown individuals.
Lee said that it was best if the local authorities would set up a buffer zone of 100-metre radius along river areas to disallow any businesses from operating at the area.
“We held many dialogues with the authorities in the past on how to manage our water resources, safety and other things but people don’t seem to be concerned about it.
“When a crisis happens, a lot people will make noise. Once it passes, no one talks about it anymore. We need cooperation from all stakeholders if we are to resolve the matter once and for all,” he said.
Set up taskforce
On why the Government seems helpless on the matter, Lee said water management in the nation is too fragmented.
“We have too many agencies dealing with the issue; be it state, federal and even local authorities. There is a need for better coordination and enforcement has to be strict,’ said Lee.
On related matter, the association president Datuk Abdul Kadir Mohd Din said the Government should form an independent taskforce to investigate all water pollution cases.
“The taskforce should report directly to the prime minister and the results must be made public,” he said.
Kadir added that despite Malaysia being blessed with an abundance in water resources, one should not take things for granted.
“We need to adopt a mindset where water is limited and it must be managed properly, in view of growing demand due to population growth,” he opined. –Nov 18, 2020.
