Life source: Clean water from a nearby waterfall flows into Sungai Kuang, which provides water supply to an Orang Asli settlement and water treatment plants. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
RAWANG: Several recycling factories processing plastic-based waste are located perilously close to Sungai Kuang here, raising serious concerns on air pollution, further contamination incidents and hazards to water supply in the Klang Valley.
Checks at the Sonstar Industrial Park, which is near the Kuang Orang Asli settlement, showed that the factories are close to Sungai Kuang, making the river susceptible to contamination in the event of leakages or indiscriminate disposal of waste material.
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An acrylic recycling factory there was identified as the source of contamination of Sungai Kuang after poly methacrylic acid (PMAA) from its premises leaked into the river on July 22.
The Selangor Water Management Board (Luas) had ordered the factory to stop the discharge and carry out cleaning works immediately as the negligence posed a risk to the nearby Rantau Panjang and Sungai Selangor phases 1, 2 and 3 water treatment plants.
Later, the factory had its licence suspended for seven days.
A visit to the site yesterday showed that the factory was located on cleared agricultural land adjacent to dense plantations and mountainous terrain, about 1km from the nearest tarred road and Sungai Kuang.
Several workers of nearby factories said they observed “questionable practices” being carried out in the area by plants believed to be owned by foreigners.
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A senior worker at a local recycling factory said he believes the recycling factories are operating here as such industries face restrictions in foreign countries due to environmental hazards.
“They set up their operations here. The processed and end products here are then shipped back to the foreign countries.
“There is a factory here that starts operations after 7pm. Thick black fumes can be seen billowing from the premises when processing of waste material takes place.
“The air in this whole area is polluted with the smoke and it looks like fog.
“If it’s done in the day, the factories will be easily found out for pollution,” said the worker, who called for greater scrutiny and enforcement by the relevant authorities on these foreign-owned factories.
He said he and his co-workers were overcome by toxic fumes emanating from a ravine behind their workplace following the July 22 incident.
“We suffered breathing problems, headaches, sore throat and nose irritation. Some of us are still affected.
“We knew there was a leak from a factory and we alerted the authorities. The area was swarmed by personnel from the relevant agencies and the police.”
Another worker said that days after the incident, he and his colleagues spotted tar-like liquid flowing through a nearby ravine into Sungai Kuang.
He said he asked several workers in the area who told him that “it is OK to release the liquid into the ravine as it does not produce any putrid or foul odour”.
“I had no idea what it was or if it was toxic but it did not seem right to have it flow into a river involved in the supply of water to households,” said the worker, who lives in Rawang.
At the Kuang Orang Asli settlement located upstream, villagers spoke of being affected by toxic fumes that spread there after the incriminating incident in July.
“Although the water on our side of the river was not affected, the fumes from the leak caused problems mainly to old folk and children.
“It was quite bad this time,” said a housewife.
Sungai Kuang, which receives fresh water from a nearby waterfall, is among the rivers that feed four water treatment plants supplying water to several districts in the Klang Valley.
On July 22, an acidic odour was detected at Sungai Kuang near Jalan Kampung Orang Asli, Kuang in Gombak, by Luas, which coordinated with the Selangor Environment Department and Selayang Municipal Council at the site to trace the source of the odour.It was traced to a factory believed to be processing acrylic material for recycling.
Inspections at the factory found that there was an effluent flow from a tank leak, causing the PMAA to overflow into drains leading up Sungai Kuang.
