The rubbish which had accumulated near the Sg Linggi water treatment plant intake point. This had to be cleared to enable the plant to run normally.
SEREMBAN: Operations at the Sg Linggi water treatment plant had to be stopped for several hours as there was too much garbage at the raw water intake point, says Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun.
The Negri Sembilan Mentri Besar said due to this, the authorities were forced to stop operations on Sunday (April 14) as continuing meant it could damage water treatment equipment and affect water quality.
"When we were forced to stop for a few hours, the treated water supply to consumers in Port Dickson was affected.
"We would not have faced such a situation if the people did not dump garbage into the rivers," he told reporters after chairing the state exco meeting at Wisma Negri.
Some of the rubbish which accumulated at the Sg Linggi water treatment plant raw water intake point
Among the affected areas in Port Dickson that experienced a cut or low pressure included Batu 6 Jln Pantai, Batu 4 Jln Pantai, Jln Sua Betong, Air Kuning, Tampin Linggi, parts of Port Dickson town, Simpang Bukit Palong, Chuah, Bukit Pelandok and Tanah Merah Site A.
Aminuddin said he failed to understand why people still chose to throw rubbish into the rivers.
"I have personally seen people throwing rubbish in the river near the market.
"To me, these people may be living in urban areas, but they are still, to some extent, uncivilised," he said, adding that some irresponsible individuals dump old furniture and even use oil in rivers.
Aminuddin said he had once participated in a campaign in Sg Linggi, where his team members removed seven boatloads of rubbish from the river.
Operations resumed after the area was cleaned up
The government, he said, has spent tens of millions of ringgit over the years to raise awareness of the need to safeguard our rivers, but some Malaysians have paid no heed to this.
Aminuddin said some people who lived near rivers were among the culprits as waste generated from their homes is conveniently dumped into the waterways.
"They just want to take the easy way out. They are not bothered if the garbage they throw into the river could somehow affect operations of water treatment plants or the water quality," he said.
However, Aminuddin said he was glad to note that the state did not have any river which fell under the polluted category.
"I was told there was one river in Nilai that had poor water quality previously, but now we have none," he said, adding that the state Drainage and Irrigation Department would continue to monitor this.
