Kedah Govt Seals Off Huge Illegal Dumpsite Along Sungai Muda

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Kedah exco Tan Kok Yew (right) with SWCorp authorities sealing the site today.SUNGAI PETANI: A 2ha illegal dumping site on the banks of Sungai Muda near Sidam Kiri here has been sealed off by local authorities
This follows the discovery of mounds of waste which are feared to have polluted the river, affecting hundreds of padi fields in the rice-bowl state
Kedah Local Government Committee chairman Tan Kok Yew said the dumpsite is believed to have been operating since 2008. Residents began complaining in 2016 but no action was taken then
“The first complaint was received in 2016, but we were not in the government then and don’t know what happened. What I can confirm now is that this dump is illegal
Some of the rubbish dumped on former mining ground near a river at Kampung Kemumbung in Sidam Kiri, Sungai Petani.“I urge all residents to be calm. We will clean up the site of all its waste,” he said during a visit to the site
Tan said it was also too early to say if the dumpsite could have caused pollution of Sungai Muda and the padi fields but a probe is ongoing
The river is relied on by hundreds of farmers to irrigate padi fields. Raw water is also drawn from this river by Penang to be treated into drinking water
Tan said the dumping site has been seized under Section 81(3) of the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007
Tan Kok Yew.He said the Sungai Petani Municipal Council and the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) will issue notices to the landowner and will subsequently pursue a court case against the owner
Tan urged more Kedahans to report such incidences of illegal dumping to the authorities so that action can be taken
In the meantime, the Kedah government will hold an emergency meeting with the relevant parties today to discuss this illegal dumping site
The Persatuan Tindakan Alam Sekitar Sungai Petani, an environmental action group, brought up the issue of the 2ha site operating in Kampung Kemumbung in Sidam Kiri yesterday
It dumping ground is located on former sand mining land on the edge of the river. It is hidden from public view by a small oil palm estate
It is located 20km southeast of Sungai Petani town. An aerial view of Sungai Muda has revealed a sea of waste stretching right to the edge of the river
Checks at the site showed electronic waste originating from as far as Austria and other European countries as well as high-end chemicals from India and municipal waste from Japan and Asean countries
Villagers claimed that since 2016, at least 30 lorries had been entering the site daily through the narrow kampung roads. They claimed their complaints had fallen on deaf ears
Another view of the dump along the river.Meanwhile, Kedah Menteri Besar Mukhriz Mahathir said a “conclusive approach” had to be taken in settling various cases of illegal dumping brought up recently in Sungai Petani
“We have a landfill in Semeling (about 12km from Sungai Petani). Because SP is the largest contributor in terms of rubbish, trash lorries have to sometimes wait up to four hours before the rubbish can be dumped
“Perhaps that is why some individuals are cashing in on this by letting their land to be turned into a dumping ground, taking fees as low as RM20 from each lorry to dump all sorts of rubbish on the banks of Sungai Muda,” he was quoted by Berita Harian as saying. - FMT

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