TELUK INTAN, Jan 4 — The Perak Department of Environment (DOE) will take action against an oil palm waste processing factory in Kampung Selabak here, on suspicion of dumping waste into Sungai Bidor, in the area, not according to specifications.
Its director Rosli Zul said his department was in the process of taking action against the plant based on complaints received from the residents of the village.
“The waste management system of the factory must be upgraded because we found that the wastes were indeed treated before being disposed of into Sungai Bidor but it but did not follow the stipulated specifications,” he said when contacted by Bernama here, today.
Earlier, the National Organisation For Ecosystem Conservation had urged Perak DOE to take immediate action against the plant which had been dumping waste into Sungai Bidor for the past 12 years, polluting the air and also Sungai Bidor.
“The waste has the potential to pollute the nearby river ecosystem as well,” it said.
A resident representative, Ahmad Fuad Shahrudin, 51, said he had submitted the complaint against the disposal of the waste via five water channels around the factory area to DOE Perak several times since March last year.
He said although the pollution problem had become more serious over the past year, no action had been taken until now thus affecting the income of the residents, especially fishermen.
“Some fishermen claim that fish and prawn catches have dropped and affected their income after the factory disposes oil palm waste into drains that flow directly into Sungai Bidor.
“Besides that, the residents of Kampung Selabak often notice foul odour from the factory every day and we also experience bodily itches,” he said.
Meanwhile, a source from the factory when contacted by Bernama said, the premises had just started operations last December after being closed since last February due to repair and upgrading work.
He said oil palm waste was fully treated by the factory.
“We will thoroughly investigate the allegations of the residents on the cause of the pollution which is said to be coming from this factory,” he said. — Bernama
