THE sewage leak at the upper east side of Putrajaya Wetlands Park last week is due to encroachment.
In a statement, Indah Water Konsortium (IWK) said the foul odour and water discolouration reported earlier did not originate from its sewerage assets.
It said the incident resulted from a utility trunking cable which encroached on IWK’s gravity sewer pipeline.
“Investigations found the compromised utility trunking cable encroaching IWK’s gravity sewer pipeline, causing sewage to leak and contaminate the wetlands,” it said.
The national sewerage company said this in response to the Nov 8 StarMetro report titled “Dead fish, foul odour at Putrajaya Wetlands Park due to sewage leak”.
IWK, in its statement, explained that it took swift action after receiving a complaint on the matter on Nov 1.
“IWK promptly dispatched a technical team to investigate the source.
“The initial assessment confirmed that IWK’s nearby sewage treatment plant and network pumping station were operating normally, with no overflow or abnormalities in treated effluent discharge.”
On a subsequent report from Putrajaya Corporation that the water remained blackened on Nov 3, IWK said it carried out a more detailed inspection of its sewerage network.
“IWK took immediate action on Nov 3 and 4 to assist in repairing the affected trunking cable and deployed tankers to remove oil, grease and other overflow materials from the wetland.
“From Nov 4 to 6, IWK continued to monitor the wetland area and observed steady improvement in water quality,” said IWK.
It added that a formal report had been submitted to the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) for further investigation and action regarding the utility cable encroachment.
IWK also said that it remained committed to maintaining high operational standards and acting fast to protect public health and the environment. — By VIJENTHI NAIR
