Water cuts: Illegally dumped waste identified as source of water pollution, says ministry

Photo by Environment and Water Ministry

PETALING JAYA: The exact location of the source of pollution that caused two water treatment plants in Selangor to shut down has been identified, says the Environment and Water Ministry.

In a statement on Monday (Oct 5), the ministry said the main location is at the borders of the industrial area at Jalan Emas at the Nilai Industrial Estate in Negri Sembilan.

"The waste was found at the location and there was also waste of organic compounds. The odour of the waste is almost similar at the Sungai Semenyih water treatment plant which had to be shut down yesterday (Oct 4)," said the ministry.

The team which made the discovery was headed by the National Water Service Commission (SPAN), Environment Department (DOE), police and Air Selangor.

Photo by Environment and Water Ministry

The statement said that six soil samples were taken by the Negri Sembilan Environment Department and sent to the Chemical Department.

"The Seremban Municipal Council and the Sewage Waste Corporation will be cleaning up the bulk of waste today (Oct 5)," said the ministry.

The ministry also said that the area would now be cordoned off and added that it will be under the watch of the police and the DOE.

"The illegal waste dumped is suspected to be managed by an unlicensed company. Investigations by the DOE, SPAN and police show that this is likely to be a secondary source," said the ministry.

The ministry also said the odour is still very strong and added that water supply has yet to be resumed.

On Sunday (Oct 4), Air Selangor announced a water cut to 309,687 account users in the Klang Valley.

The Sungai Semenyih and Bukit Tampoi water treatment plants had to completely stop operating yesterday following pollution detected in Sungai Semenyih, which is the raw water source for these plants.

This happened just one month after the odour pollution in Sungai Gong which led to water disruption that affected 1,292 areas in the Klang Valley and nearly 1.2 million consumer accounts.