PETALING JAYA: Heftier punishments are necessary to deal with companies that cause river pollution, say environmental experts.
Universiti Teknologi Mara’s (UiTM) School of Engineering senior lecturer Dr Nurul Fariha Lokman said the proposed amendments to introduce harsher punishment under the Water Services Industry Act were much needed following continuous violations, especially those committed by industrial clusters along rivers.
“As our rivers continue to face the threat of pollution, the amendment to the Act is vital to mitigate the risks of, if not to stop altogether, pollution from industries affecting water intakes.
“The penalty needs to be more stringent to be commensurate with the severity of the offences.
“Mandatory jail sentences should definitely be considered,” said Nurul Fariha, who is also head of facility at UiTM’s Institute of Leadership and Development (ILD).
The Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Ministry is expected to table the amendments in the Dewan Rakyat in June.
The amendments include increasing the water pollution fine to RM10mil from the current RM100,000, and the jail sentence to 15 years from one year.
Nurul Fariha, however, warned that it remained to be seen whether stiffer penalties would lead to less pollution.
“We shall see whether these changes will actually contribute to effectively restricting environmental pollution,” she said, adding that there must be strict enforcement so that those who violate the law would be afraid of repeating their offence.
Environmental activist Puan Sri Shariffa Sabrina Syed Akil also agreed with the proposed amendments.
“It’s been long overdue as those offenders never learn,” she said.
Association of Water and Energy Research Malaysia president S. Piarapakaran proposed an immediate amendment to the Environmental Quality Act by adding a new section to enable claims for losses suffered by affected parties.
“This section would allow the Environment Department (DOE) to tabulate the loss of income and additional costs suffered by affected parties during pollution incidents.
“The enabler clause would also allow the DOE to freeze the assets of wrongdoers (with respect) to the total money owed,” he said, adding that the current penalty and claim of clean-up cost was only a small fraction to the actual cost of pollution and did not deter wrongdoers.
A proper database to monitor the movement of chemicals in Malaysia should also be set up by the Federal Government to prevent illegal dumping, Piarapakaran said.
“Harmful chemicals and those that produce harmful byproducts (after processing) must be recorded in this system.
“This database can also assist the DOE in narrowing down possible culprits in the event of illegal dumping, while also speeding up the time in which perpetrators are caught,” he added.
