DESILTING works in Klang, Selangor are being intensified to remove silt and overgrown vegetation in monsoon drains and ponds used for managing stormwater runoff.
Klang mayor Datuk Abd Hamid Hussain said cleaning the waterways was a crucial and a continuous effort in flood control management to ensure efficient surface runoff.
It also increased the drainage systems’ capacity to handle heavy rainfall.
“We allocated a total of RM8mil this year to clean up monsoon drain systems, including earth-cut drains and retention ponds.
“Monsoon drains and ponds needed to be desilted to remove accumulated debris that hindered water flow and reduced their effectiveness,” he said.
Abd Hamid was speaking after chairing Klang Royal City Council’s (MBDK) full board meeting at its headquarters in Jalan Perbandaran, Klang.
He said the works involved four cycles, over a nine-month period, from June to March next year.
“Drainage cleaning alone costs the council RM7.2mil while the clean-up of retention ponds costs RM800,000,” he said.
Abd Hamid added that MDBK would hold a town hall session on its flood preparedness plan on Dec 4, at Dewan Hamzah in Klang
It is aimed at gathering feedback and views from stakeholders, including assemblymen, councillors, technical agencies and local residents.
On another note, Abd Hamid said the council will discontinue the physical delivery of assessment tax bills to property owners starting next year.
“It is part of MBDK’s plan to reduce paper usage, in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
“Property owners may check and make payments through the ipay.mbdk.gov.my portal.
“We also strongly encourage the public to pay their taxes before the stipulated deadlines for each assessment period.”
He said MBDK received a Sustainable City Award under the Malaysian Urban-Rural National Indicators Network for Sustainable Development (Murninets) at the Selangor-level World Town Planning Day celebration held early last month.
Murninets is an approach to assess the sustainability of a city through 56 sustainability indicators in 11 key sectors.
