Saturday, November 14, 2015

Asing sisa pepejal ikut kategori, jimat kos RM2b setahun - Berita Harian

ISNIN, 31 OGOS 2015 @ 10:59 AM

BERMULA esok, penduduk di enam negeri serta dua wilayah persekutuan akan memulakan langkah kecil yang memberi impak cukup besar apabila diwajibkan mengasingkan sisa pepejal mengikut kategori. Kempen mengasingkan sisa pepejal di punca atau di rumah ini akan memberi kesan cukup besar kepada persekitaran, alam sekitar dan menjimatkan kos pengurusan sisa pepejal dan pembersihan yang menelan belanja hampir RM2 bilion setahun. 



Wartawan BH, MOHD AZIS NGAH mendapatkan komen Menteri Kesejahteraan Bandar, Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan, 




Datuk Rahman Dahlan, mengenai pelaksanaan usaha ini dan beliau secara jelas mengakui ia bukan kerja mudah untuk melakukan anjakan pemikiran rakyat tetapi kejayaan usaha ini juga akan menentukan perubahan peradaban rakyat Malaysia menuju negara maju. Penjelasan ringkas mengenai langkah mengasingkan sisa pepejal di punca atau di rumah yang akan bermula esok Ia adalah proses mengasingkan sisa pepejal yang dihasilkan di rumah mengikut komposisi sisa pepejal seperti kertas, plastik dan lain-lain seperti kaca, seramik, aluminium, besi, logam, sisa elektronik dan bahan fabrik. Ia juga membabitkan bahan berasaskan getah, kulit, dan sisa berbahaya serta sisa kebun atau taman, sisa pukal, sisa makanan, lampin pakai buang dan sisa lain yang kotor dan tercemar. Secara mudahnya, sisa pepejal ini hendaklah diasingkan kepada sisa yang boleh dikitar semula dan sisa baki iaitu sisa yang akan dihantar ke tapak pelupusan sampah. Contohnya kategori kertas merujuk kepada bahan seperti akhbar lama, majalah, buku, komik, katalog, poskad. Bahan plastik seperti botol minuman, botol jus, botol mineral, bekas sabun dan sebagainya. Adakah kaedah kutipan ini akan berdasarkan sistem 2+1? Kutipan sisa pepejal yang sudah diasingkan seperti kertas dan plastik atau bahan kitar semula akan dijalankan seminggu sekali. Bagi sisa baki, kutipan akan dibuat dua kali seminggu. Semua kerja ini akan dilakukan syarikat konsesi yang dilantik kerajaan. Bagaimana dengan penggunaan plastik untuk mengasingkan sisa ini? Adakah orang ramai akan dibekalkan plastik khas? Orang ramai dikehendaki menyediakan sendiri apa-apa bekas yang bersesuaian atau plastik sampah untuk mengasingkan sisa pepejal. Namun, mereka digalakkan menggunakan plastik sampah berwarna biru untuk sisa kertas dan plastik sampah putih untuk sisa plastik dan plastik hijau untuk lain-lain bahan kitar semula. KETUA Pegawai Eksekutif Perbadanan Pengurusan Sisa Pepejal dan Pembersihan Awam (SWCorp) Datuk Ab Rahim Md Noor (dua dari kanan) menyerahkan tong kitar semula kepada wakil pertubuhan bukan kerajaan (NGO) di Taman Medan Berjaya, Langkawi. - Foto Hamzah Osman Rakyat sudah biasa dengan amalan meletakkan semua sampah atau sisa pepejal ke dalam satu tong. Ini tentunya cabaran besar mengubah amalan yang sudah dianggap selesa. Apa komen Datuk? Kita akui mempunyai cabaran besar dalam menguruskan sisa pepejal. Di negara membangun dan maju, kadar kitar semula sangat tinggi kerana rakyatnya berasakan itu tanggungjawab mereka menjaga sumber alam dan ini adalah cara menguruskan pembaziran. Dalam kehidupan moden, kadar pembaziran begitu mendadak tinggi, jadi kena ada kaedah baharu mengurangkan. Di negara maju, tahap kesedaran rakyat mereka agak tinggi berbanding di negara membangun kerana belum ada sesuatu yang boleh dibanggakan dalam perkara ini. Kadar kitar semula di Malaysia dianggarkan 10 hingga 11 peratus sahaja dan kita menyasarkan sekurang-kurangnya 22 peratus menjelang tahun 2020. Ini cabaran besar kerana perlukan anjakan minda kerana apabila melaksanakan kitar semula, ia adalah peradaban baharu. Ia bukan senang kerana sudah biasa dengan amalan melonggokkan semua jenis sampah ke dalam satu tong. Kita telah memutuskan pada tahun lalu untuk membuat kutipan berasaskan konsep 2+1 iaitu dua kali kutipan sisa basah dan sekali sisa kitar semula, tetapi ia tidak wajib diasingkan. Apabila tidak diasingkan antara botol plastik, kaca, kertas atau sisa dapur, ia memerlukan satu proses khas di tempat pelupusan sampah dan ia akan meningkatkan kos kerana pengurusan di tapak pelupusan akan mengenakan caj tambahan. Jadi, lebih baik rakyat yang mengasingkan sampah di punca kerana jika dibuat di tapak pelupusan, kos akan ditanggung kerajaan. Jika buat di kawasan masing-masing, apabila sampai ke pusat pelupusan, ia lebih senang dilupuskan. Ia juga akan memberi kesedaran kepada peringkat isi rumah mengenai apa yang perlu dibuat. Apabila kita faham dan peka, kita akan tahu apa perlu dibuat. Kenapa hanya negeri yang disenarai sahaja diwajibkan melaksanakan langkah pengasingan sisa pepejal ini? Kenapa sistem itu tidak dilaksanakan di seluruh negara? Ia merujuk pada negeri Pahang, Johor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Perlis, Kedah, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur dan Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya. Hanya mereka menerima pakai Akta Pengurusan Sisa Pepejal dan Pembersihan Awam 2007 atau Akta 672 walaupun ia sepatutnya dijalankan di seluruh Semenanjung. Kita hanya boleh laksanakan jika kerajaan negeri bersetuju melaksanakan Akta 672 ini. Selangor dan Pulau Pinang adalah negeri besar, tetapi masih tidak bersetuju melaksanakan akta ini walaupun secara peribadi saya berasakan mereka sepatutnya bersetuju berdasarkan kemampuan mengurus sedangkan sistem pengurusan sampah di negeri terbabit tidak begitu memuaskan sehingga menimbulkan banyak rungutan. Ada banyak sebab negeri-negeri lain tidak bersetuju, pertamanya mungkin disebabkan masalah kewangan, kekurangan peralatan atau sistem yang diguna pakai. Bagi negeri yang bersetuju, mereka wajib menggunakan trak khas mengikut standard yang ditetapkan dan harganya dianggarkan kira-kira RM300 juta. Kita tak boleh memaksa, tetapi ketika ini, kita sedang berbincang dengan beberapa negeri mengenai perkara ini supaya sistem pengurusan sisa pepejal seluruh negara mengikut standard ditetapkan. Bagaimana dengan maklum balas yang diterima setakat ini dan adakah Kementerian yakin ia mampu mencapai sasaran ditetapkan? Maklum balas setakat ini memang positif dan ini membuktikan pemikiran rakyat semakin matang dan peka terhadap penjagaan alam sekitar. Kita merancang mengadakan kajian terperinci mengenai status semasa pengurusan sisa pepejal negara pada tahun 2016 sehingga tahun 2021 bagi menilai kesan dan impak program yang dijalankan. Setakat ini, kita menetapkan sasaran kadar kitar semula meningkat ke tahap 22 peratus menjelang tahun 2020 iaitu bermula daripada peringkat awal sehingga ke tahap akhir pada peringkat kitar semula. Kita masih ada lima tahun lagi. Sebenarnya, sudah banyak perkara dilakukan bagi mencapai sasaran ini. Bermula dengan langkah penswastaan, diikuti tindakan menetapkan Indeks Prestasi Utama (KPI) mengurangkan pembaziran dan pengurusan lebih baik. Ia diteruskan dengan konsep 2+1 dan langkah seterusnya ialah memastikan perkara ini (pengasingan) diwajibkan. Mungkin kita akan memikirkan sehingga ke tahap jika terlalu banyak membuang sampah, mereka akan didenda dengan cara terpaksa membeli lebih banyak plastik khas. Kita kena pastikan sampah dimasukkan ke dalam plastik khas. Ada juga cadangan supaya dikenakan bayaran tertentu untuk tempoh tertentu. MENTERI Kesejahteraan Bandar, Perumahan dan Kerajaan Tempatan, Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan. - Foto Abd Rahim Rahmat Adakah sekarang pelaksanaannya percuma? Bukan percuma, mereka sudah membayarnya, tetapi kos itu diserap melalui bayaran cukai pintu. Memang ada komponen untuk pengurusan sisa pepejal. Tetapi kos keseluruhan banyak ditanggung Kerajaan Pusat yang membelanjakan hampir RM2 bilion setahun. Bagaimana dengan persiapan melaksanakan usaha ini terutama aspek logistik dan kempen penerangan supaya masyarakat lebih faham dan bersedia? Semuanya sudah bersedia. Bagi negeri yang menerima pakai Akta 672, sudah banyak program penerangan dilaksanakan. Memang sudah ada program sistematik, contohnya mengedarkan risalah dan majalah kepada isi rumah. Banyak kempen melalui media, contohnya melalui akaun sosial twitter menggunakan tag #asingkan diguna pakai sebanyak 16.7 juta kali bermula 9 Ogos sehingga 26 Ogos. Itu adalah sebahagian daripada contoh kempen dan pendekatan ini akan berterusan di pelbagai saluran. Kita juga menggunakan tag #separate. Bagi negeri yang tidak terbabit dalam kempen ini, kita juga menggalakkan mereka memberi penerangan kepada rakyat masing-masing. Ramai keliru dengan kenyataan berkaitan denda jika gagal mengasingkan sisa pepejal. Tidakkah itu keterlaluan? Ya, ramai yang tidak faham. Pelaksanaan sisa pepejal di punca secara mandatori bermula September 2015, tetapi ia dilaksanakan secara berperingkat. Peringkat awal, tiada sebarang denda akan dikenakan. Jika mengikut akta ini, memang ada peruntukan mengenakan denda sehingga kadar maksimum sebanyak RM1,000, tetapi apa yang kita lakukan ialah mengambil pendekatan memberikan isi rumah masa secukupnya untuk mereka lebih faham. Bermula 1 September, kita memberi mereka ruang kira-kira sembilan bulan sehinggalah akhir Mei 2016, kita tidak akan kenakan kompaun, sebaliknya terus memberi nasihat dan penerangan. Apabila tamat tempoh iaitu bermula 1 Jun 2016, kami harap mereka sudah faham dan kompaun akan dikenakan. Bagi rumah yang bertanah seperti teres, banglo, semi D, denda sebanyak RM50 bagi kesalahan pertama, RM100 (kesalahan kedua), RM200 (kesalahan ketiga) dan jika kompaun tidak diselesaikan, tindakan seterusnya diserahkan kepada mahkamah. Bagi rumah serata seperti flat dan kondominium, kadarnya berbeza bermula dengan RM100 bagi kesalahan pertama, RM200 (kedua) dan RM500 (ketiga). Jika tidak diselesaikan, ia akan dirujuk kepada mahkamah. Bagi kategori rumah serata ini, kita akan berurusan dengan jawatankuasa pengurusan bersama perumahan itu yang bertanggungjawab menguruskan sesuatu perumahan. Terpulang kepada mereka bagaimana nak menguruskan dengan pemilik rumah. Difahamkan, sebahagian besar sisa yang dikumpul setiap hari ialah sisa makanan yang jelas menunjukkan kadar pembaziran cukup tinggi dalam kalangan rakyat Malaysia. Statistik menunjukkan lebih 30,000 tan sisa makanan dikutip setiap hari. Bayangkan betapa banyak sisa makanan. Sebab itulah kita mahu maklumkan pelupusan sisa pepejal itu adalah tindakan terakhir kerana masih banyak tindakan lain boleh kita buat, contohnya kurangkan penggunaan. Berbelanja dan makan mengikut keperluan, bukan kehendak. Boleh guna semula apa sahaja yang boleh dan tindakan kitar semula adalah tindakan terakhir. Gunakan konsep 3R iaitu Reduce (pengurangan), Reuse (guna semula) dan Recycle (kitar semula). Langkah pengurangan dan penggunaan semula itu adalah langkah paling mudah. Apabila sudah sampai tahap negara maju, kita bimbang perkara itu dilupakan, berbelanja melebihi keperluan dan kos pengurusan semakin bertambah. Jika kos hampir RM2 bilion setahun yang dibelanjakan untuk menguruskan pembersihan dan pengutipan sampah tadi boleh dikurangkan ke tahap RM1 bilion atau RM500 juta, bayangkan berapa banyak sekolah boleh dibina. Bantulah kerajaan menguruskan sisa pepejal supaya duit itu boleh diuruskan untuk perkara lain. Melalui program ini, kita menjangkakan mampu mengurangkan sehingga 40 peratus jumlah sampah yang dihantar ke tapak pelupusan, sekali gus menambah usia tapak pelupusan sedia ada. Sebab itulah program pengurusan sisa pepejal di punca ini sangat penting untuk memastikan sampah dapat diuruskan dengan lebih berkesan. Sebelum ini, pernah ada kempen mengurangkan penggunaan bahan plastik, tetapi ia dilihat tidak begitu berjaya. Apa komen Datuk? Agak susah kerana rakyat Malaysia seolah-olah sudah jatuh cinta dengan penggunaan plastik. Paling membimbangkan ialah penggunaan botol plastik. Mungkin boleh kurangkan plastik ketika membeli-belah, tetapi penggunaan botol plastik semakin meningkat. Melalui pelbagai kempen dan pendekatan yang sudah dijalankan, adakah Datuk rasa mereka cukup bersedia berganding bahu memastikan usaha ini tercapai? Pada peringkat awal, ia agak sukar, mungkin kerana tidak faham. Mungkin mereka terlalu selesa dengan amalan mengumpulkan semua jenis sampah ke dalam satu plastik sampah. Mereka tidak faham, bayangkan jika 30,000 tan sampah yang dikumpul setiap hari ini sudah diasingkan awal, ia lebih mudah dan menjimatkan kos. Tapak pelupusan sampah juga semakin berkurangan dan kita terpaksa membuka tapak baharu yang jauh daripada penempatan. Tentunya orang ramai tidak mahu tapak baharu dibuka berhampiran penempatan baharu. Itu semua membabitkan kos logistik dan pengangkutan menghantar sampah. Semua kos itu ditanggung rakyat. Sebab itulah usaha mengurangkan kos itu sangat penting. Saya percaya, lama kelamaan rakyat akan faham dan boleh menerimanya dengan baik. Negara maju berjaya melaksanakan kerana mentaliti mereka sudah berubah dan sayangkan negara. Ini adalah satu isyarat rakyat kita sudah semakin menerima peradaban baharu. Jika sanggup melakukan usaha, maknanya peradaban kita semakin bertambah baik. Contoh paling mudah, kita boleh gunakan air tadahan hujan untuk bersihkan kenderaan atau menyiram pokok bunga. Tetapi disebabkan ia memerlukan sedikit kos, mereka tidak sanggup lakukan pada hal menggunakan bekalan air paip juga perlukan kos. Perkara mudah seperti inilah yang sepatutnya difikirkan, begitu juga dengan tindakan pengasingan sisa pepejal.

Selanjutnya di : http://www.bharian.com.my/node/78592

Monday, November 9, 2015

Ipoh council pays long overdue attention to city parks - The Malaysian Insider

BY JERRY FRANCIS
Published: 9 November 2015 7:01 AM

The city council held a gotong royong last Friday to clean up Ipoh Riverfront Park, which the mayor says will be restored to its former condition to serve the community. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Jerry Francis, November 9, 2015.
The city council held a gotong royong last Friday to clean up Ipoh Riverfront Park, which the mayor says will be restored to its former condition to serve the community. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Jerry Francis, November 9, 2015.
Ipoh City Council has started to pay attention to the maintenance of its four public parks, following reports that the parks were falling apart from neglect and disuse.
The city council held a gotong royong last Friday to clean up Ipoh Riverfront Park, which had been in decline even after millions of ringgit were spent on its redevelopment in 2005.
Mayor Datuk  Zamri Man said the city council hoped to restore Ipoh Riverfront Park to its original role of family park.
“It is a park for the entire Ipoh community” said Zamri as he planted an ironwood tree (caelalpinia ferrea) in the park during the gotong-royong.
The water features and children’s pool will be mended once maintenance work was complete.
“The work will start as soon as possible and I expect to see improvements by the beginning of next year,” he said.
Zamri said the city council was making an effort to improve the recreation parks for the benefit of the people.
The next gotong-royong would be at D.R. Seenavasagam Park, he said.
In September, The Malaysian Insider reported the city parks’ state of dereliction and disrepair. Community newspaper Ipoh Echo had frontpaged the poorly maintained parks with photographs supporting its claims.
The photographs show decayed gazebos, empty aviaries, broken flowerpots, overgrown undergrowths, defunct fountains and abandoned facilities.
The report states that, over the years, poor maintenance had ”slowly but surely” destroyed the once beautiful Taman D.R. Seenivasagam, Ipoh Riverfront Park, Gunung Lang Recreation Park and Sultan Abdul Aziz Recreation Park.
“It (the poor maintenance) cannot be the result of shortage of funds or manpower. In fact, much money and manpower had been channelled into (the redevelopment and facelifts of) these public parks,” it said.

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Create Space For Pedestrians And Cyclists - Ipoh Echo

1 Nov 2015 by Dr. Richard Ng


On Sunday, October 18, Ipoh City Watch (ICW) was invited to participate in the inaugural Ipoh Car Free Day along with some government agencies, tourism-related companies and an environment-related non-governmental organisation. The programme aims to turn Ipoh into a low-carbon-emission city and the people into a low-carbon community. It also aims to create awareness of a healthy lifestyle where the people can cycle, skateboard, roller-skate and walk freely without any vehicles on the roads.
The event, which coincides with the launch of the refurbished Perak Tourism Centre and Ipoh Heritage Trail footprint, was officiated by Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri DiRaja Dr Zambry Abd Kadir. Present were Dato’ Nolee Ashlin Mohd Radzi, State Exco for Tourism, Dato’ Hj Mohd Gazali Jalal, Perak State Treasurer and Ipoh’s mayor, Dato’ Zamri Man.
We jumped at the opportunity given to us by Ipoh City Council for two reasons; to prove that ICW is not anti-government but rather the eyes, ears and mouths of Ipohites. And to hold true to our vision of making Ipoh the most liveable city in Malaysia, the same aspiration Mayor Dato’ Zamri has.
Led by our Hon. Secretary Victor Chew and assisted by 12 other members, ICW put up a display of buntings, banners and multimedia to showcase our past performances in line with our objective of making Ipoh the most liveable city in Malaysia. It was the very first public project for us and I would say it was a fantastic job by our volunteers. As the President of ICW, I must say I am very proud of what they have done.
We took the opportunity to educate the public on 3R to help make Ipoh City clean through our compost demonstration, flyers and 3R signature pledge. Among the VIPs who made their pledge to support the 3R campaign were Dato’ Seri DiRaja Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, Dato’ Haji Mohd. Gazali bin Jalal, Dato’ Nolee Radzi and Dato’ Zamri Man.
The Ipoh City Council has done a good job in organising this event. The turnout was below expectation, especially at the booths set up for Ipohites to view. It was probably due to lack of publicity and information made available. More could be done in the future.
The Car Free Day will be meaningless if it is not properly promoted and no spaces are provided for pedestrians and cyclists. I wish to echo what Dato’ Rusnah Kassim said during her Executive Talk to Ipoh City Council staff on Wednesday, October 14. She said that the city’s public transport system should be improved so Ipohites would opt for public transport to commute within the city.
For ICW, the event too has given us an opportunity to talk face-to-face with the mayor. I managed to raise several issues such as lack of support from the councillors on our programmes to educate the public on their responsibilities in making Ipoh clean. I also urge the mayor to enforce a ruling requiring ‘pasar malam’ traders and restaurant operators along the Ipoh Heritage Trail to clear their garbage and place it in a proper garbage bin to prevent the habit of convenient dumping which is the primary cause of illegal dump sites.
City Council must direct its workers to clear up pedestrian walkways in housing estates which are covered with grass over the years. What is the point of forcing developers to build walking paths when they are not maintained by the Council? This will help encourage healthy living among residents.


Recycling Vending Machine - Ipoh Echo

1 Nov 2015
Business students from the Business and Marketing programme at Sunway College Ipoh took part in a competition by the National Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Malaysia (NAWEM) to come up with a business idea that would improve their local community in Ipoh. 
The Sunway College Ipoh team QUATRRO came up with a prototype in the form of a “Recycling Vending Machine”, named FAST (Funding As Social Trending), a non-profit social enterprise project.
This entry was selected as the recipient of NAWEM’s award. The competition was held for tertiary students in conjunction with The National Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Malaysia conference on Saturday, October 3 at the Eastin Hotel, Penang. The award consisted of a cash prize of RM500 and a certificate.
The competition to turn great ideas into great business invited ‘early-stage’ idea entries that were not generating revenue or receiving financing of any form and to complete a “One-Page Business Pitch.” The pitch was to describe the business formation based on problem solving, proposed solution, the identified target market, key competitors, sales channels, marketing activities, revenue, expenses, milestones, team and key roles and partners and resources.
The FAST recycling vending machine features a trendy vending machine, to showcase recycling as a fun and creative activity rather than a chore. “We believe in giving this authentic choice to young people as a fresh start towards building a better community. Our area of business will be to collect and recycle plastic bottles and aluminium cans, and this idea was developed after conducting demographic analysis in Ipoh. The findings include the fact that landfills are filling up. The Bercham landfill consists mainly of plastic bottles and aluminium cans which can be recycled instead of dumped.”
“We believe that FAST will meet the critical need of the local municipality by providing a feasible and cost effective alternative to landfilling the waste, as we are also seeing municipalities as our potential stakeholder.
We are in the process to have our recycling vending machine in the Sunway commercial area, which is maintained by one of our partners, Amalexcia Enterprise, (Vending machine Manufacturers). Other than that, Malaysian Nature Society and also a few schools and colleges have expressed their interest in supporting our project.
Our primary objective is to create behaviour and change the mindset of young people by building a positive feeling about recycling. We aim to embrace recycling as a very cool and trendy concept and provide municipalities with an alternative waste disposal system. The Quattro business model presents an opportunity to recycle landfill-bound waste, save the landfill space, and create creative shared value partnership with the community.
We have collaborated with Malaysian Nature Society (Perak) and are looking forward to creating SEO-optimised website to provide incentive to our customers in future, to encourage their participation, by establishing shared value partnership with corporations, for example, AEON Kinta City, who has already embraced the 3R’s programme as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility. We are looking at the possibilities of partnering with Starbucks and Lost World of Tambun. We are planning to advertise in Ipoh Echo, a community newspaper in publishing news and articles related to environmental issues.
We hope to reduce pollution by two per cent and set a new benchmark for recycling within the first two to five years. Last but not least, our product is a value added, recycling choice that appeals to the growing environmental conscientiousness among consumers to promise a better future for everyone.” said the Quattro team.

Thursday, October 29, 2015

Britain, Perak working towards more economic collaborations - The Malaysian Insider

BY ISTA KYRA SHARMUGAM
Published: 21 October 2015 3:21 PM

Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir presenting a souvenir to British High Commissioner to Malaysia Vicki Treadell. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Wong Tuck Keong, October 21, 2015.
Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir presenting a souvenir to British High Commissioner to Malaysia Vicki Treadell. – The Malaysian Insider pic by Wong Tuck Keong, October 21, 2015. 

More British manufacturing companies may be investing in Perak and creating more job opportunities for the people, British High Commissioner to Malaysia Vicki Treadell said today.
However, she declined to give more details as the matter had not been made public.
"It's not just about what Britain can sell or do in Perak, it's about what we can invest in the state to create jobs here," she said after a meeting with Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir during her official visit to the state.
Treadell said she was interested to intiate collaborations and partnerships between Britain and Perak in tourism, agriculture, agritech and the manufacturing industries.
She also praised the conception of the Royal Belum State Park as a protected forest reserve.
"There is real value in making moral and ethical judgements instead of making fast bucks from illegal logging and destroying the environment.
"Endangered species from the Asian elephants, tigers to 10 species of hornbills that are in Belum are unique to Southeast Asia.
"So many people would want to come and see something so special and so rare," she said.
Treadell, who was born in Ipoh and lived in Maxwell Road in her younger years, is expected to visit Tarcissian Convent tomorrow, where she had briefly attended school.
She will also be supporting a British council project called "Sports for All" before heading to Simpang Pulai for the opening of a new Tesco hypermarket.

Green Venture Capital, China Energy Hua Ren Industrial Investment to develop RM1.1 bil Qi City in Perak - The Malaysian Insider

By Ewe Shufei / theedgeproperty.com | October 28, 2015 8:43 PM MYT

Qi City Perak


IPOH (Oct 28): The RM1.1 billion, 26-acre Qi City development project in Bandar Meru Raya, Perak, is tentatively set to be launched within the first quarter of next year, said Green Venture Capital (GVC) CEO Chandragesan Suppiah.
A memorandum of agreement (MOA) between China Energy Hua Ren Industrial Investment Co Ltd (CEHR) and Wawasan Qi Properties Group subsidiary GVC was signed yesterday to facilitate the development's construction.
“We are very happy with this partnership as it will have huge impact on the state’s economy and further promote China-Malaysia bilateral ties,” said Perak state secretary representative Datuk Mohd Zahir Abdul Kalid during the signing ceremony yesterday.
The agreement involves a three-year partnership between GVC and CEHR for the construction works on Qi City, which are expected to start in 2016.
“This MOA marks a pivotal moment in the development of Qi City to begin the process of bringing the blueprint to reality. CEHR’s involvement in this project will showcase its expertise in infrastructure development and construction, which has a widespread reputation both in the region and around the world,” said Chandragesan in his speech.
“This strategic alliance will give us a further understanding of the Malaysian market and allow us to be part of a viable investment venture in this part of the region,” said CEHR chairman of the board Wang Wei.
Qi City consists of a teaching hospital with public and private wings, the Quest International University Perak (QUIP) campus, three condominium blocks, retail outlets, a medical rehabilitation centre, a convention hall to cater for up to 1,500 people and hotel suites.
Chandragesan remarked that the development aimed to attract specialists from diverse fields to teach, practice as well as to conduct research in the hospital wings via the provision of multi-platforms to benefit students, lecturers and doctors.
The development will also be located close to the central business district of Bandar Meru Raya, as well as amenities such as a private international school, an animation theme park, a hyper market and a business hotel.
GVC is a special-purpose vehicle established to spearhead the Qi City development, while CEHR is involved in sectors such as international trade and engineering, energy exploitation and management, real estate investment and construction.

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Council starts unique programme to barter compost for food waste - The Star

Oct 21, 2015 By Priya Menon

Residents planting vegetables including sawi at the launch of MPSJ’s barter campaign.
A UNIQUE barter campaign was launched in Serdang Jaya recently to allow residents to collect compost in exchange for food waste.
Subang Jaya municipal councillor Michael Noel Jalleh said the pilot project would be tested there first to help the residents get compost as fertiliser for their plants.
“In the Zone Bersih campaign, we are always looking for innovative ideas, and the unique compost for food waste barter is something out of the box,” he said.
He added that residents could collect their food waste in plastic bags and throw them in designated compost bins that would be placed at the guard house at Jalan SR 8/7.
Michael hoped the residents would take the initiative to do their part to recycle food waste as well and said residents from other areas could also approach the council for the same initiative.
Meanwhile, residents are happy to hear about the barter trade campaign, especially with their new Community Garden.
Serdang Raya SR 8/6 and 8/7 Residents Association chairman Tan See Meng said it was a great start to a proper waste separation initiative.
“Several states have already begun to separate waste and I think it is good to start this practice first before the Selangor state government implements waste separation as well,” he added.
The barter trade campaign was launched during the opening ceremony of a Community Garden in Jalan SR 8/7, Serdang Raya 8 under the Zone Bersih campaign.
The Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) had allocated RM40,000 for the Zone Bersih for four chosen Residents Committee (JKP), one of it is Zone 23 where Serdang Jaya is located.
About RM6,000 was spent for the community garden including the construction of a staircase and gate for the residents to enter the area.
Tan said the residents had pooled their energy together to clear up a parcel of land next to a small river for the garden.
The place was infested with mosquitoes in the past and the land was used to discard construction waste.
Some 30 residents came together to set up the garden with MPSJ’s assistance.
Today, about 35 fruit trees had been planted, thanks to MPSJ while residents planted vegetables including sawi on a special vegetable plot during the launch.
“This piece of land has become a useful entity for the residents here. We had asked our hardworking MPSJ contractors to help us clean the place up,” Tan said, adding that some residents had even contributed their own plants.
He said it was not only about keeping the place clean but it was also a great way to interact with their neighbours and residents from neighbouring residential areas under the Zone 23 JKP.
Another resident Khairul Nizam Basir, 37, who had planted a row of banana trees, said it would be difficult to get the residents to participate at first.
“It will not be easy to get everyone to join hands because most people have this ‘wait and see’ policy, but if we prove it to them and show them it can be successful, they will join us,” he added.