PETALING JAYA: From funding to tackle plastic pollution to incentives for greener cities, environmental groups have outlined several areas they want the government to prioritise in Budget 2027.
Sahabat Alam Malaysia president Meena Raman proposed a moratorium for data centres, saying the upcoming Budget should not provide incentives or fiscal support for the sector.
“Currently, these are missing,” she added.
Meena also hoped the carbon tax on the iron and steel sector would be introduced this year, saying it should also cover other high-carbon emitters such as power generators and petrochemical companies.
“The revenue generated from such carbon tax from these targeted sectors can be channelled towards renewable energy transition subsidies and for the poor and vulnerable groups affected by high energy costs,” she said.
Meena also called for a tax on plastic production, manufacturing, sales, use and disposal as an initial step towards reducing plastic consumption and waste.
“Impose and enforce a ban on problematic and unnecessary single-use plastic products and packaging,” she said.
Calling for greater resources for climate adaptation and resilience-building, she said the government should invest more in ecosystem-based approaches, including the creation of “sponge cities”, protection and expansion of green spaces and tree planting, rather than focusing solely on flood mitigation.
Water and Energy Consumer Association of Malaysia president Saravanan Thambirajah said more funding should be allocated for drainage upgrades, river maintenance, flood mitigation, early-warning systems and community preparedness.
“Prevention is better than repeatedly spending on recovery and compensation after disasters,” he said.
He also called for the accelerated implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility, particularly for packaging and plastic waste.
“Producers must take greater responsibility for products and packaging throughout their life cycle, including collection, recycling and proper disposal.
To combat plastic pollution and illegal dumping, Saravanan proposed that local authorities and enforcement agencies be provided with adequate funding, manpower and technology to monitor illegal dumping and environmental pollution and take stronger enforcement action.
“The government must invest in urban trees, green spaces, cooling initiatives and climate-resilient infrastructure. Extreme heat also increases household electricity consumption as people depend more heavily on air-conditioning,” he said.
“Budget 2027 should accelerate Malaysia’s transition from managing waste after it is created towards preventing waste, segregating it at source and making producers responsible for what they put into the market.”
