KUALA LUMPUR: More than 3,600 illegal dumpsites across the country have been shut down this year, with over 1,500 tonnes of rubbish cleared, says Nga Kor Ming.
The Housing and Local Government Minister said the dumpsites were located and cleared by the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp) as part of its Sentuhan Kejayaan programme.
Costing an estimated RM406,500, the operation closed a total of 3,634 dumpsites across seven states, removing 1,530 tonnes of trash as of October 2025.
Nga said this marks the most comprehensive enforcement effort since the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Act 672) was implemented.
A total of 4,268 undercover intelligence operations also led to 22 court cases against illegal dumping perpetrators, with fines totalling RM385,000 and 23 vehicles seized this year.
"This accomplishment is clear proof of the Madani government’s determination to combat illegal dumping aggressively, consistently and with high impact.
"Just as firefighters are the nation’s rescue heroes, SWCorp personnel are the heroes of public cleanliness.
"These are the heroes working behind the scenes, showing great commitment to helping us keep the country clean," he said during a Sentuhan Kejayaan programme dumpsite clearing operation here on Thursday (Dec 11).
However, Nga acknowledged that illegal dumping cannot be resolved through enforcement alone and that stricter industry monitoring and tighter regulation are needed.
To this end, he said new prevention and enforcement strategies had been implemented by SWCorp.
These include improved monitoring through the installation of 47 CCTV units at hotspot locations, which have detected eight illegal dumping cases for further action this year.
He also announced the deployment of SWCorp’s new elite patrol unit, comprising 100 high-powered motorcycles, which has begun patrolling illegal dumpsite hotspots nationwide as of December.
"The unit conducts targeted patrols in hotspots and hard-to-reach areas, enhancing SWCorp’s preparedness, monitoring capability and public confidence in enforcement.
"We have also increased integrated enforcement operations in collaboration with the police, Environment Department and Malaysian Space Agency.
"This has enabled targeted enforcement actions at high-risk, critical sites with strong potential for prosecution," Nga said.
He called on Malaysians to report suspected illegal dumpsites or dumping activity to SWCorp’s WhatsApp hotline at 013-210 7472 or via its application.
"Maintaining cleanliness requires cooperation from everyone - the public, private sector, residents, non-governmental groups - not just the government.
"Every resident and person can serve as intelligence agents for cleanliness by reporting any illegal dumping to SWCorp’s hotline or its application," he added.
