Amirudin visiting a booth at the MPS Environmental Carnival in Taman Batu Caves. — ART CHEN/The Star
ALL 12 local councils in Selangor have been ordered to carry out operations on illegal factories to prevent river pollution.
The order by Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari was the result of a National Water Services Commission’s (SPAN) report urging the state government to carry out checks in Kuang for illegal factories.
This was after the report linked a premises in Kuang to a pollution incident in July.
The pollution was traced to an illegal plastic recycling factory that leaked poly methacrylic acid (PMAA) into a tributary of Sungai Selangor.
While state local government and tourism committee chairman Datuk Ng Suee Lim had earlier ordered Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) to raid factories in Kuang, Amirudin clarified that a similar order had been issued to all local councils in Selangor.
Amirudin said the impending raids would not just be a one-off action as the plan was to zero in on factories near tributaries to ensure they do not pollute water sources.
“There will be no more tolerance. We have given enough time for these factories to join the whitelisting programme,” he said during the MPS Environmental Carnival in Taman Batu Caves.
StarMetro previously reported that the state government was offering incentives under the Legalising of Unlicensed Factories (PPKTK) programme until Dec 31, 2027.
The whitelisting programme is a move to legalise factories.
The incident in Kuang on July 22 caused four water treatment plants to shut down, disrupting supply to over 1,140 areas in Selangor.
Amirudin said local authorities had been instructed, at the last state executive council meeting, to double up operations of unlicensed factories at high-risk areas.
He said there were 20 river pollution incidents and three unscheduled water disruptions this year.
Amirudin said the situation would improve especially with implementation of Selangor’s Zero Discharge Policy.
“All parties involved will have a greater sense of responsibility since they will have to pay fees for releasing effluents,” he said.
“At the same time, by January, the Water Resources Assurance Scheme (Waras) will be finalised to ensure that there is no disruption to the operation of water treatment plants during pollution incidents.”
There are about 6,690 factories in Selangor operating without valid licences and permits, and more than half are in Klang and Shah Alam.
Operators have until Dec 31, 2025 to submit their applications.
