Push to get people to recycle - Star Metro Perak

2 August 2016 - by Manjit Kaur

A TEAM has been formed in Perak to educate the public to embrace recycling in order to reduce the use of plastic bags and polystyrene containers.

Ipoh City Watch (ICW) President Prof Dr Richard Ng said the main objective of the committee, known as the Perak Action Team for a Sustainable Environment (PATSE), would be to focus on the 3Es – Educating, Engaging and Exciting the public to practise the 3Rs – reduce, reuse and recycle.

Ng, who is the chairman for the action team, said the idea to set up the body was mooted after a forum by ICW was held to discuss the state government’s decision to ban plastic bags and polystyrene containers beginning next June.

During the forum titled “The Impact of Plastics on the Sustainability of Environment: Should Plastics be Banned?” held last month, State Executive Councilor Datuk Rusnah Kassim a challenged the Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association (MPMA) to come up with a convincing proposal for the state government to reconsider the decision on the ban, as currently the state stands firm on the decision.

Ng said the action committee comprises members of ICW, MPMA, state Solid Waste Management and Public Cleanliness Corporation (SWCorp), Koperasi Alam Hijau Perak Bhd (Kohijau), local councils, and representatives from the state government.

He said at the end of the forum the panelist agreed to giving the 800 members of MPM’s Perak branch a chance to prove themselves on finding a solution to the challenge by Rusnah.

“The action team will go on a statewide campaign, starting with educational road shows during the monthly Car Free Day event.

“We will also hold talks in schools, and work with any organisation which is keen to cooperate with us,” he said recently.

During the forum last month, MPMA President Datuk Lim Kok Boon urged the state government to educate the public about waste management and littering instead of banning the use of plastic bags and polystyrene containers.

Lim said the more importance should be placed on the 3Rs, something that is done in more developed countries.

Ng said ICW is concerned about the impact of plastics on the environment, but also sympathises with MPMA’s members as the banning of plastics bags will affect their revenue.

Ng said, as one of the four panelists for the forum, ICW supports the government’s move in banning the use of polystyrene and plastic bags effective June 1, next year.

“I made my point clear that by 2020, if nothing is done, Perak will generate three billion tonnes of garbage, of which 450,000 tonnes or about 15% of the total garbage consist of plastics.

“Plastics takes a few hundred years to degrade and this will impact the sustainability of our environment. Plus, plastics are made from petroleum which is a non-renewable source of energy,” he added.

‘Polystyrene not the real culprit’ - The Star - Central

7 Jul 2016 by Bavani

KUALA Lumpur folk have six months to say goodbye to their tapau (takeaway) boxes. The ubiquitous clam shell containers made from polystyrene will be banned in the Federal Territories with effect from Jan 1, 2017.

Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor made the announcement recently saying that only biodegradable products can be used in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan next year.

The ruling was introduced in Pasar Raja Bot in Chow Kit last month, and will be extended to include night markets, restaurants, food trucks, shopping malls, hypermarkets and hawker centres in the next few months. (see graph).

The exercise will be carried out in four phases to encourage residents and traders to wean themselves off plastic foam products until the Federal Territories Biodegradable Product Usage By-Law is enacted.

Tengku Adnan’s reasoning is that plastic is harmful to the environment as it would take 100 to 500 years to degrade.

So restaurant owners, petty traders, roadside stalls and even manufactures of plastic foam will no longer be allowed to use and make these products any longer.

Did KL jump the gun?

In a nutshell, Kuala Lumpur has joined other states namely Selangor, Penang, Perak, Johor and Malacca, which are also starting to encourage the usage of biodegradable containers.

The move, however, has not gone down well with plastic manufacturers.

“People need to get the facts right,’’ said the Malaysian Plastic Manufac-turers Association president Datuk Lim Kok Boon.

“Consumers are easily influenced by things they see and read from the Internet and have this knee-jerk reaction to things they do not understand,’’ said Lim.

Lim explained that many developing cities in China and even the US had similarly jumped on the bandwagon to ban polystyrene in the name of environmental protection and public health, but decided to revert when they understood the topic better.

“China decided to revert to allow polystyrene after banning polystyrene for 14 years.

“So did New York. And sadly this is perpetuated by the media,’’ he added.

Green Concept Technology Sdn Bhd, Director (Business Development) Sri Umeswaran Shekar also pointed out the misconception of polystyrene being unsafe.

“Worldwide authorities such as the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) have determined that polystyrene is safe for use in contact with food,’’ said Umeswaran.

He said the usual reasons given to ban polystyrene products were overly simplistic and did not touch the root of the problem.

“They ban and think they are doing the right thing, but a lot of wrong information is attached to the reasons for doing so,’’ he said.

“Part of the myth is that polystyrene cannot be recycled.

“Now that is wrong since we are in the business of doing just that,’’ Umeswaran added.

Are the alternatives better?

So we know the Government is committed in eradicating the use of polystyrene and is currently working with several companies to offer cheaper alternatives.

However, the question that needs to be asked is whether banning one type of product and replacing it with another is the solution to the problem?

“When you ban something, there must be a reason for it. You have to ask yourself the rationale behind the ban,’’ said environment and waste management specialist Dr Theng Lee Chong.

Theng, who holds a PhD in Waste Management from Fukuoka University, Japan, invites people to look at polystyrene from a waste management perspective.

He said many manufacturers of biodegradable products like to think they are eco-friendly.

“We have heard of many big brands who have attempted to “greenwash” themselves by offering alternatives to polystyrene.

“There is not a single product that is able to replace polystyrene and be environment-friendly too,’’ said Theng.

He said paper boxes (biodegradable) could be five to six times heavier and therefore the waste stream could increase from 300,000 tonnes per year to 1.5 to 1.8 million tonnes per year.

“Multiple researches have shown that environmental impacts from paper is actually higher based on LCA (life cycle assessment) approach. And most paper boxes, when contaminated, is still not fully degradable,’’ he said.

What is degradable?

Theng also draws attention to the lack of specification or standards to define what is “degradable” in Malaysia.

“Products are termed degradable, but how many percent really is degradable is a question; because in many cases, in order to bring down the costing, the products dependability is put lower to suit the market demand.

“Manufacturers are known to use the word “degradable” on their products for marketing purpose, but often, their claims of recyclability and degradability are deceptive and misleading to the consumers,’’ Dr Theng said.

The Waste Management Association of Malaysia’s (WMAM) Communications and Marketing chairman Mohd Radhi Cheah concurs with Theng.

“Although the Government feels they are championing a good cause by banning polystyrene, many fail to see that the alternatives are no better to the environment.

“Some have encouraged the use of paper since it decomposes in a matter of weeks, but the environmental impact paper has on nature is more detrimental than plastic,’’ he said, adding that plastic, which is a by-product of petroleum, is more prevalent in our lives than we think.

Hence, he said, a complete ban was not advisable and a better management of the substance to preserve the environment is needed.

Theng, however, feels that rather than replacing polystyrene with something else, consumers should be reducing their dependence on it.

“Reduction is always good and is the first priority of 3R (reduce, reuse and recycle). But I am against the replacement of one material with another,’’ Theng said.

Both Theng and Mohd Radhi agree that there must be proper planning by the Government before they enforce any policy, as in many cases the decisions are always business driven and is beyond scientific support.

Dispelling the myth on polystyrene

As a man of science, Theng also wants to clear the air over the misleading information on polystyrene.

“Let’s look at the numbers first.

“I have been to over 50 different landfills in Malaysia and to be honest, I did not see polystyrene containers lying around like the way it has been pictured in the media.

“It is misleading when people say there are mountains of polystyrene rotting in the landfills. That is simply not true.

“When you look at the percentage of composition of organic and recyclable waste, organic waste is highest at 44.5%.

Plastic is at 13.2%, but if you break it down further, polystyrene is only 1% to 2% of the total.”

“In terms of weight, it is less than 300,000 tonnes per day; which is small compared to other categories,’’ he said.

Theng said diapers are 10 times more toxic to the environment – 12% more than polystyrene.

So why put the blame solely on polystyrene?

Environmentalists’ thoughts

“It is a nuisance to the environment. No question about that,’’ said Matthias Gelber, referring to the white foam plastic.

Gelber, who is often referred to as the Green Man, is a popular green activist who advocates sustainable ways of living in Malaysia.

“Society and industries need to shift away to more sustainable materials; it is the way of the future,’’ he stressed.

Environmental Protection Society Malaysia vice-president Randolph Geremiah also believes that Kuala Lumpur would fare better without the white foams and he was not in favour of recycling polystyrene either.

“It is going to be difficult (to recycle polystyrene). Even if manufacturers have the facilities and technology to do it, you still need someone to collect them (used polystyrene).

“Unlike steel or paper, there is very little value on these foam packs,’’ added Geremiah.

“Banning polystyrene may reduce it, but replacing it with paper boxes will still contribute to carbon emissions, energy being used to produce and transport it,’’ said Theng.

He also predicts that once the ban takes effect, instead of polystyrene, people are just going to throw more paper boxes instead.

“They are just transferring one problem to another,’’ he said, adding that Malaysians need to upgrade the level of their mindset to be more civic conscious.

Lim concurred, saying: “People need to start recycling, separating their waste at source, managing their rubbish better and simply stop littering.’’

And ironically, it is not like there is no awareness.

“According to studies carried out by Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp), 70% of people know that recycling is good, but they simply don’t practise it,’’ said SWCorp Federal Territory director Hazilah Gumri.

“It is really an attitude problem.’’

On the polystyrene ban, this quote from Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Ada E. Yonath who visited Malaysia for a talk on waste management several years ago sums it up perfectly: “Politicians are very far from science.’’

‘Need not ban plastic’ - The Star Metro Perak

28 June 2016 by Manjit Kaur

THE Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association (MPMA) has urged the Perak state government to educate the public on waste management and anti-littering instead of banning the use of plastic bags and polystyrene containers.

Its president Datuk Lim Kok Boon said similar to developed countries, the focus should be on the 3Rs - reduce, reuse and recycle.

He added that the association would state its concerns about the ban and the alternatives available to the Perak government.

Neither plastic bags nor polystyrene products were a problem, he said, but became a problem and nuisance only when they were littered indiscriminately.

Lim said therefore the government should have awareness programmes, similar to the Japanese who started an anti-littering programme before having a waste management solution.

“The public and supermarket operators must be educated to reduce the number of plastic bags used. If the products can be packed into three plastic bags, why the need for five bags?

“The second part, will be to reuse, which 80% of the people are already practising by using bags as garbage liners, with the third section being the recycling of plastic bags, bottles and other products.

“This is an efficient way because even if plastic bags are banned, at the end of the day, people will still need them to throw away rubbish,” he told reporters after the opening of a forum by state executive councillor Datuk Rusnah Kassim last Tuesday.

Titled “The Impact of Plastics on the Sustainability of Environment: Should Plastics be Banned?, the forum, organised by Ipoh City Watch, was held in view of the state government’s decision to ban plastic bags and polystyrene containers beginning June next year.

Lim added that the normal misconception of plastics is that the product did not degrade, and therefore it is not good for the environment.

He said studies have shown that even biodegradable products, which are hailed to be more environmental friendly, did not degrade in landfills due to its unfavourable environment.

“Degradation in the presence of oxygen emits carbon dioxide, while degradation in the absence of oxygen (typically in landfills) emits methane, and both gases are potent greenhouse gases which contribute to global warming.

“Methane gas is 22 times more harmful than carbon dioxide, and therefore people don’t understand, when you degrade, you cause global warming.

“The Environment Protection Agency of America, and the Australian Department of Environment, says that most things which goes into a landfill does not degrade, and if it degrades, it will cause global warming,” he said.

Malaysian Plastics Forum’s Education and Awareness chairman Ahmad Khairuddin Sha’aban said there was no landfills in Italy, Switzerland and Austria as the countries practised a policy of closed economy - meaning that anything from food to plastics were recycled.

Ahmad Khairuddin said food in those countries were compost, while plastics were recycled into furniture, or into energy.

“Japan started with its anti-littering campaign, followed by waste separation, and now about 90% of the waste is recycled.

“There, the government has not banned plastic bags or polystyrene as their citizens are disciplined enough not to litter,” he said, adding that Malaysians too had developed the culture of reusing plastic bags as garbage liners.

Rusnah told reporters that the state government would reconsider the decision to ban the use of plastic bags and polystyrene containers if MPMA’s proposal was convincing.

“It takes between 500 and 1,000 years for plastics to degrade, and we cannot leave such a problem for the next generation to witness.

“Even if you tell people to reduce the use of plastic bags they will not listen, so we need concrete solutions to overcome the problem,” she said, adding that she was not convinced yet with the proposal.

Ireland, Wales and Scotland governments, she said, had imposed a levy for each plastic bag used.

“So instead of a ban, maybe the association can suggest a tax be imposed,” she added.

Forum On Plastics - Ipoh Echo

1st July 2016 by Nantini

A public forum titled, "The Impact of Plastics on the Sustainability of Environment: Should Plastics be Banned?" jointly organised by Ipoh City Watch (ICW) and Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association (MPMA) was held on Tuesday, June 21 at WEIL Hotel, Ipoh.

The Perak state government has announced that plastics, especially polystyrenes will be banned statewide effective June 1, 2017. Ipoh City Council was among the first local council to respond by barring plastics from its canteen every Friday beginning June 1, 2016.

The objective of the forum was for the public to listen to the differing views on the subject matter and to make their concerns known.

The panellists were Associate Professor Dr Richard Ng, President of ICW, Fatimah Ahmad, Director of Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) Perak, Dato’ Lim Kok Boon, President of MPMA and Ipoh City Council’s City Planning Director, Zulqarnain Mohammad.

The event was officiated by the State Executive Councillor for Women, Family and Community Welfare Development, Housing and Local Government, Dato’ Hajah Rusnah binti Kassim.

Lim insisted that any containers or packages made out of plastic, paper or any other materials would not pollute the environment if they were used for their intended purposes. However, the items would become an eyesore when they are being disposed indiscriminately.

According to Lim, MPMA has always been advocating the 3Rs (reduce, reuse and recycle) mantra as most plastics can be recycled. It is for this reason that plastics need to be separated from mainstream waste so that they can be recycled into other useful products.

“The introduction of the waste separation source (SAS) initiative by SWCorp calls for the public to separate their recyclables from non-recyclables so as to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills. Thus, when handled responsibly, plastics do not cause waste management issues, just like other recyclables,” Lim stressed.

“I’ll challenge them to come up with a convincing proposal to reduce the usage of plastic bags without imposing a levy. If the proposal is logical and acceptable, we can reconsider the decision,” said Dato’ Rusnah.

Fatimah of SWCorp had this to say; “Let's start with the first R, which is “reduce” followed by “reuse” and then “recycle”. By reducing your consumption, you’ll also reduce the amount of waste you produce. The three Rs are really the best waste management with “reduce” being the most important strategy.”

According to Zulqarnain, plastic chemicals from food packs leech into food and end up in our bodies causing potential health problems. Thus the usage of plastics should be treated with caution. 

“I encourage the public to use glass or stainless-steel bottles, reusable or biodegradable bags. Stop using plastic cutleries and start recycling whatever and whenever you can,” he posited.

Dr Richard Ng concurred with the action of the state government and Ipoh City Council. “We at ICW support the Perak government’s and Ipoh City Council’s decision to ban plastic bags and polystyrene containers although the majority prefer to take a middle path. This is to give the plastic industry a chance to come up with a proposal on how they can help recycle and reduce polystyrene and plastic bags from going into landfills and the oceans.”

First step in restoring Ipoh as clean city - The Malaysian Insider

March 4, 2016

The six-month trial anti-litter programme initiated in Gugusan Manjoi, the largest cluster of traditional villages within Ipoh, has won the hearts of residents.

After just seven weeks, the residents are giving the waste collection company E-Idaman the thumbs up, saying the programme has eliminated illegal dumpsites, resulting in a cleaner environment because cats and dogs no longer have bags to rip open.

The trial began early in January with the company distributing free dustbins to all households and simultaneously spring cleaning the entire neighbourhood.

Senior couple Mohd Tahir, 70, and his wife Esah Mohd Hashim have lived on Jalan Datin for 40 years and said that since the start of the programme illegal dumpsites had stopped.

“Our house is on the junction with the main road. In the past, I would hang my bags out for collection but passers-by would then leave their rubbish nearby.

“Animals usually tear up the waste bags and that leaves a foul smell. Ipoh City Council (MBI) only collects the bags. The torn bags are left on the road and they foul up the neighbourhood for days,” he said.

“Now every house has a dustbin and we have clean streets. It is an improvement,” said Esah, who admitted they had never owned a dustbin before January.

Just around the corner on the main road Jalan Raja, roti canai sellers Nor Ainshah Dahlan and Suhaimi Zambri said that the initiative was a general improvement.

“As there are no more illegal dumpsites along the roads and this make the neighborhood cleaner,” said Ainshah.

Indeed E-Idaman’s service has been so good that residents themselves have adjusted their mind-set not to litter, said stallholders Nor Azlinda and Nur Amira.

The trial was launched by mayor Datuk Zamry Man to monitor and evaluate the quality of service provided by government-appointed concessionaires SWCorp and Environment Idaman, and in collaboration with the city council.

E-Idaman state operations manager Nur Azam Ahmad Zaini said the first priority was to distribute 120-litre dustbins to the households and 600-litre bins to commercial premises.

“Through January and February, by working with the village chiefs, we distributed over 90% of our allotted dustbins,” said Azam. – March 4, 2016.

KL condos to use recycling cages for waste separation - The Malaysian Insider

March 4, 2016

The use of special steel cages for recycling will be expanded to highrises in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and five states from April.

Solid Waste And Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) deputy chief executive officer (technical) Dr Mohd Pauze Mohd Taha said the initiative would give a further boost to the separation of waste at source programme which was implemented last September, Bernama reported.

Apart from those in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, households in Johor, Malacca, Negri Sembilan, Kedah, Perlis and Pahang were required to carry out waste separation.

Pauze said currently, the special cages were only used in residential neighbourhoods.

"The concessionaire is responsible for supplying the cages and those living in highrise apartments and condominiums will have to separate their waste just like those living in landed properties," he said at a media briefing on waste recycling organised by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

The Malaysian Insider had previously reported that a total of 129 recycling cages would be placed at flats in Negri Sembilan to enable effective waste sepration at source.

The cages have three separate sections for paper, plastic and other recyclable items.

Residents should separate and place the items in plastic bags before placing them in the correct section in the cage.

Pauze said at present, the recycling rate in Malaysia was still at 17%. The target is to reach a recycling rate of 22% by 2020.

Meanwhile, SWCorp has issued 50,000 reminders from September last year to last month to households which failed to separate waste at source.

SWCorp is an agency under the Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government Ministry, which is in charge of the waste separation project.

It has been reported that the implementation of mandatory separation of household solid waste is capable of reducing the amount of solid waste sent to waste disposal sites by 40%.

Beginning June 1, action will be taken again those who failed to carry out waste separation at source.

First time offenders will face a RM50 compound, with RM100 and RM500 for subsequent offences.

A RM1,000 fine would be imposed if an offender did not settle the compound. – March 4, 2016.

Promoting a culture of recycling - The Star

28 Sept 2015  By Ivan Loh

Buntong and Lim Garden residents weighing the plastic bottles at the collection centre.

THE Community Recycling Projects at Lim Garden and Buntong are now up and running.

Launched by Perak Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Rusnah Kassim recently, the two projects saw about 300 residents from each area taking part in waste separation.

Two recycling bins have already been placed – at the playground in Taman Kurin, Buntong and the field behind the Rukun Tetangga office in Lim Garden.

Collection for the recyclables would be done the second and fourth Sundays of the month in the evening.

The recycling project in Buntong was a collaboration between Ipoh City Watch (ICW), Perak Solid Waste Management and Public Cleanliness Corporation (SWCorp) and Komuniti 1Malaysia Buntong (K1MB).

The project in Lim Garden was organised by ICW, SWCorp and the Lim Garden Rukun Tetangga as well as its Residents Association pro-tem committee.

People have already started using the recycling bin at Taman Kurin, Buntong.

The projects were started following the success of the inaugural project at Kampung Jelapang Tambahan, which was launched in April.

Its main objective was to reduce waste from going into the landfill by promoting a culture of recycling amongst the community.

K1MB secretary M Ramachandran said they were eager to start the project to keep Buntong clean.

“I’ve seen the results at Jelapang and I hope we can do the same for Buntong.

“People should start learning to separate their garbage because the waste separation law will be implemented sooner or later,” he said.

Ramachandran said it would take some time for the community to adopt the waste separation process but he felt that it was achievable.

“When people start doing it and it is beneficial to the community, others will follow.

“With more awareness, people will separate their waste on their own,” he said.

Lim Garden Residents Association pro-tem committee adviser Victor Chew said they have distributed pamphlets to the residents, informing them of the recycling project.

“About 200 to 300 households are aware.

“Proceeds from the sale of the recyclable waste will go to the Rukun Tetangga and Residents Association to conduct local activities,” he said.

Sorting things out - The Star

28 Sept 2015 By Ivan Loh

Buntong and Lim Garden residents learning how to make compost from household food waste.

THE Solid Waste Management and Public Cleanliness Act 2007 in Perak could be implemented this year.

Perak Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Rusnah Kassim said she has set up a meeting with the Housing and Local Government Minister to discuss the agreement within the next few weeks and hoped to have it signed “soon”.

Rusnah said there were still some terms that needed to be sorted out before the agreement is signed.

“We may go with privatisation.

“However, we want to ensure that the agreement between the Federal and state would not burden the people or the local council workers,” she said after the launch of the Community Recycling Projects for Lim Garden and Buntong at the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Buntong last Saturday.

Rusnah said the state, Solid Waste Management and Public Cleanliness Corporation (SWCorp), solid waste management company Environment Idaman Sdn Bhd (E-Idaman) and the Federal Government have already met and discussed the terms of the agreement.

Rusnah (second from left) launching the Community Recycling Project for Buntong and Lim Garden. With her are SWCorp Perak director Fatimah Ahmad (left) and Dr Ng (second from right).

“We felt that 21 years is too long for the agreement.

“We want to review the solid waste management company’s performance every three years,” she said.

Rusnah added that she has checked out E-Idaman’s performance in Kedah.

“The feedback was positive.

“The cleanliness level has improved considerably,” she said, adding that the company has been approved by the Federal Government to service states in the northern region including Perak, Perlis, Kedah and Penang.

Ipoh City Watch president Prof Dr Richard Ng said it was of utmost importance that the state privatises solid waste management.

Dr Ng said the local council lacked the expertise in garbage collection.

The residents signing the recycling campaign banner.

“The Ipoh City Council does not have enough garbage trucks.

“Contracted garbage collectors will not pick up garden waste, making it an ongoing issue,” he said.

“People need to fork out their own money to have the garden waste collected when complaints are made to the city council and this is unfair as people are already paying taxes,” he added.

Dr Ng said the city council did not have enough enforcement officers to go around to deal with those who dispose of garbage indiscriminately.

“The state needs to seriously consider privatisation.

“Once the issue with garbage, drainage and grass is solved, the city council can focus more on greening and developing the city,” he said.

“And, the people will not blame the state government for these issues anymore,” he added.

Rusnah lauded the community recycling project and said people should start learning about garbage separation.

She also said that Pasir Pinji and Manjoi could be the next areas to take on the project.

“I’ve spoken to the Pasir Pinji assemblyman about the recycling project.

“Pasir Pinji is also part of Ipoh and I think the general cleanliness of the area is also important,” she said.

Recycling Project Launch - Ipoh Echo

1 Oct 2015 by Nantini Krishnan

Ipoh City Watch (ICW) successfully launched the Buntong and Lim Garden Community Recycling Project in collaboration with the Perak Solid Waste Management and Public Cleanliness Corp (SWCorp).

The event was held at the Sri Maha Mariamman Hall, Buntong on Saturday, September 19 and was officiated by Dato’ Rosnah Kassim, the Executive Councillor for Women and Family Development, Social Welfare and Housing and Local Government. Present at the ceremony were Hajah Fatimah Ahmad, Perak SWCorp Director, Ipoh City Councillor M. Veeran, who represented the mayor and ICW President, Dr Richard Ng.

The objective of the project was to educate residents of Lim Garden and Buntong on the importance of garbage separation and recycling in order to help keep the environment clean.

Ipoh City Watch’s other initiative to reduce solid waste is by composting. A demonstration on composting was shown during the launch.The process is to convert organic wastes such as food to organic fertiliser.

According to Dr Richard Ng, the goal of community recycling is to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills by promoting the culture of recycling in the community.

“Community recycling is the best option for the public. The programme is not difficult to put to practice and is best conducted via active engagement with the end-users,” said Rusnah in her opening remarks.

Some 150 residents from both housing estates attended the launching ceremony.

SWCorp has established garbage collection points in Lim Garden and Buntong. It is a good start for residents to do their part in garbage separation which will become mandatory in the country soon.

NGOs call for engagement with ratepayers to prepare for solid waste law - The Malay Mail

15 Sept 2015  By Farahin MH Noor

IPOH, Sept 15 — Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have called for  an extensive public engagement exercise to get residents prepared for the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Act, touted to take effect within the next couple of years.

Ipoh Ratepayers and Taxpayers Association deputy president Victor Sankey said although the move to privatise waste collection was good, it could turn out to be a failure in Perak.

He said he was not aware of whether Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp) had met ratepayers to explain its disposal operations. 

“As far as I know, there has been no public engagement. We are ill-informed about the solid waste management plan. No party has made any attempt to clarify the matter to the public,” he said. 

Sankey said there should be town hall meetings with NGOs, communities and residents associations to ensure efficiency of implementation once the Act was enforced.

“Such meetings will help iron out ambiguities, answer inquiries as well as entertain proposals raised by the ratepayers,” he said.

Perak Consumers Association president Abdul Rahman Said Alli said the implementation of the Act would encourage recycling. However, the implementation mode was wrong, and it should not be  profit-based.

“The company’s priority should be to serve the people because we, the taxpayers, are their biggest funder,” he said.

Abdul Rahman said he was not against privatisation of services, provided they were carried out in accordance with the law.

“Both the state government and SWCorp must declare the operational cost to the people so they can see the value for money that they will receive,” he said.

Ipoh City Watch (ICW) president Dr Richard Ng said the state government should adopt the Act.

“The people have been yearning to have good waste management services. ICW urges the state government to go for it,” he said.

“The current waste management system is no longer efficient. There are over 2,000 illegal dumpsites in Ipoh alone, and they make up about two-thirds of the whole of Perak.”

Ng said by signing the waste disposal agreement, the local councils could hand over the waste management service to efficient and effective parties.