‘Sungai Kinta pollution needs to be tackled at source’

ABOUT 30% of Sungai Kinta’s river basin is used for agriculture.

The Perak environment committee chairman Teh Kok Lim said this was based on an environmental assessment report conducted by the Global Environment Centre (GEC) between 2021 and 2022.

This figure, he said, reflected the second largest use of land for agriculture after forest areas, which was at about 33%.

“About 1.7% of the total area of the Sungai Kinta river basin is used for industries.

“These activities can be one of the main river pollution factors of Sungai Kinta if the industries do not follow the standard operating procedures and guidelines set by the Department of Environment (DOE), Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) or the local authorities,” he said.

Teh was speaking at the launch of the “Best Management Practices for Selected Business Players through Green Living Practices” workshop in Ipoh.

“We are not directing the blame on anyone but we are looking for solutions to prevent and address river pollution issues through best management practices approach at each premises and tackling pollution at source,” he added.

The Sungai Kinta river basin is about 268,612ha in size and is linked to 11 tributaries including Sungai Penoh, Sungai Termin, Sungai Pari, Sungai Kampar and Sungai Pinji.

“Looking after the river basin is also part of caring for the environment.

“This is something emphasised by all parties, be it globally or in Malaysia, as we switch our focus to these relevant issues like natural disasters, pollution or quality control as important issues in our daily lives,” he added.

The workshop was organised under the “Stewardship for a Healthy Kinta River Basin through Green Living Practices” project implemented by GEC in collaboration with Perak DID and the DOE. It was funded by Yayasan Hasanah.

Its aim is to achieve a healthy river basin for Sungai Kinta in the long run.

About 37 participants from 30 businesses attended the one-day workshop.