PETALING JAYA: There is a need to review and coordinate existing legal acts related to water pollution, along with any proposed amendments to these laws, says Subang Jaya assemblyman Michelle Ng.
Ng, who chairs the Selangor water resource management special select committee, said legal discrepancies related to water pollution offences should also be given attention to avoid conflicting agency jurisdictions, especially in terms of the investigation that was currently happening in the field.
"This coordination is also necessary to provide clarity to the Attorney General's Department regarding the laws that should be used.
"If we want an effective law, its implementation and enforcement need to avoid ambiguity," she said in a statement on Thursday (Feb 16).
She said this in response to the government’s recent announcement that heavier punishments could be imposed on those who pollute and contaminate water sources under new amendments to existing laws.
Ng suggested that offences related to water pollution should fall under only one Act, and similar laws in other acts should be repealed.
She added that in Selangor, water pollution offences currently came under five laws, including the Water Industry Act 2006, Local Government Act 1967, Environmental Quality Act 1974, the Penal Code, and Selangor Water Management Authority Enactment 1999.
"The special select committee has also found that the maximum fine for water pollution offenders is RM75,000.
"This fine is too low when considering that the offenders’ actions affect millions of people, especially when water treatment plants are forced to shut down.
"In addition to increasing the fine in the Water Services Industry Act 2006, we suggest that the minimum fine should also be specified."
She added that human resources within agencies, machinery and water infrastructure should also be improved.
It was reported earlier that amendments to the Water Industry Act 2006 would raise the maximum fine from RM100,000 to RM10mil, and a prison term of up to 15 years from the initial one-year term.
Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said that water users would also be able to claim damage costs from polluters whose acts risk or cause e closure or disruption of the water supply system.
Nik Nazmi said the amendments would be reviewed and scrutinised before being taken up for approval by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).
The amendments are expected to be tabled in the Parliament sitting in June this year.
