PETALING JAYA: Three containers suspected of carrying electronic waste (e-waste) from Batam, Indonesia are expected to arrive at Port Klang on Thursday (Sept 3), raising concerns among environmental groups.
The Basel Action Network (BAN), together with Nexus3 Foundation and Ecological Observation and Wetlands Conservation in Indonesia, claimed the containers were identified during a recent visit to Batam and were linked to an e-waste recycling company.
It said publicly available trade data indicated that the containers are due to arrive in Port Klang on Thursday despite Malaysia having banned the importation of e-waste.
BAN founder and strategic director Jim Puckett urged Malaysian authorities to seize and inspect the three containers upon arrival at Port Klang.
“If they are e-waste or e-waste-derived plastic waste, entering the country without notification and consent, they are illegal.
“The Indonesian government must take them back and prosecute the company for any illegal export,” he said in a statement, adding that BAN and Sahabat Alam Malaysia have warned Malaysian authorities of this development.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia honorary secretary Mageswari Sangaralingam said Malaysia had announced a ban on all importation of e-waste into the country in February.
“The government also reiterated its stand at the Basel Convention Open-Ended Working Group meeting held in Geneva in June.
“Even if the three containers were claimed to carry plastic waste, it is likely that they are electronic plastic scrap,” she said.
BAN also said new trade data showed that three companies in Batam continued importing thousands of containers suspected of containing e-waste from the United States in March and April, despite reportedly having their import licences revoked in January.
