SHAH ALAM, Nov 4 —The Selangor government is prepared to consider the proposal for more interceptors to be placed in rivers in the state to trap waste, especially plastic.

Mentri Besar Amirudin Shari said currently, there is only one interceptor in Klang River, placed there since last August.

"There are a few other rivers in Selangor that are polluted, especially with plastic, and among the worst, besides Klang River, is in Kuala Langat.

"However, we will get the advice of Lembaga Urus Air Selangor to determine the suitable location to place the interceptors,” he told a media conference after attending a briefing on the Selangor Maritime Gateway (SMG) and The Ocean Cleanup here today.

Also present were Dutch Ambassador to Malaysia Aart Jacobi, The Ocean Cleanup founder Boyan Slat and Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd managing director Syaiful Azmen Nordin.

Landasan Lumayan Sdn Bhd is a subsidiary of the state government that is responsible for the SMG project and the company that involved in a joint venture with The Ocean Cleanup,  a non-profit organisation from the Netherlands.

Interceptor, which is part of the initiative of The Ocean Cleanup, is a tool to trap waste in rivers, especially plastic, of up to 100 tonnes daily, with the cost of building the gadget at an estimated RM3.25 million.

Currently, there are two such units operating in Southeast Asia, one in the Klang River, and the other in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Syaiful Azmen said the company was involved in cleaning the Klang River since 2016 using the waste trap.

"Previously, we collected 1,200 to 1,500 tonnes of waste a month. But now, with the use of the interceptor, the amount of waste collected has reduced by about 800 tonnes a month, as most were trapped in the interceptor.

"The quality of the water in the Klang River also improves, from class five before, to class three now,” he added.

Meanwhile, Slat said the Klang River was chosen because based on the organisation’s finding, it is among the rivers that emitted the most plastic into the ocean.

"Our organisation’s goal is to clean the ocean.  We don’t get any money doing this, we just want to help the citizens of the world to clean the ocean,” he said.

He said the organisation is now operating four interceptors, with the other two in Vietnam and the Dominican Republic.

"Next year, we aim to have 10 more interceptors. Thailand and the Los Angeles County have shown interest,” he added. — Bernama