Sivakumar says the Clean Johor programme is the right approach to tackling littering.
New technology can help authorities to safeguard the environment better from irresponsible people who dump waste indiscriminately.
Green Earth Society Johor president P. Sivakumar said while the Clean Johor programme was the right approach to tackling littering and illegal dumping, more could be done to protect the environment.
“Gotong-royong is a good short-term solution to making Johor trash-free but some people will continue to litter and dump their waste illegally.
“Authorities or even the Johor government should look at bringing in the latest technology used in other countries to help keep the environment clean,” he told StarMetro.
Sivakumar said among the technology that should be considered was a 24-hour surveillance system that could help enforcement agencies identify culprits who litter and dump waste illegally.
A surveillance system can help enforcement agencies monitor locations frequented by litterbugs and illegal dumping culprits. — Filepic
He added that through such a system, agencies could monitor known locations or hotspots that had a high number of littering and illegal dumping incidents.
“Many agencies lack manpower and this makes it difficult for them to carry out enforcement.
“However, with a monitoring system, it will be much easier to keep our environment clean.
“The monitoring system can also be placed in industrial areas or near our rivers to find those irresponsible individuals that pollute our environment,” he said.
Sivakumar added that the government should look at investing in the latest incinerators that were not harmful to the environment.
The state government, he said, should also ensure developments in Johor do not destroy forests, especially in urban areas.
Sivakumar said under the law, developers must ensure that at least 10% of the land being developed was kept as urban forest.
“Trees are important as it can help reduce global warming, which is currently resulting in heavier rainfall and causing floods.
“The government should also take back undeveloped land and build public parks for the people, which is the usual practice in many countries.
“Johor Baru city used to have many public parks where families can get together, but nowadays, there are fewer green spaces because of development,” he said.
