KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 3 — Several experts provided their take on flood mitigation following the damage along the embankments of the Sungai Golok Integrated River Basin Development Project (PLSB) in Rantau Panjang, Kelantan recently.

Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) Forestry and Environmental Faculty Senior Lecturer Dr Mohd Yusoff Ishak said the governments of Malaysia and Thailand should collaborate on the project to rectify the damaged embankments.

He said the issue arose due to the flood mitigation projects not being synchronised by both parties, and the Thai government had implemented their project first.

"The Sungai Golok flood mitigation project affects both Malaysia and Thailand. So we must have more frequent discussions on disaster management and work closely with the Thai government,” he told Bernama.

On December 28, the media reported that an estimated 50-metre stretch of the embankment at the Sungai Golok PLSB in Kampung Lanchang gave way due to strong river currents.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was also quoted as saying the Malaysian and Thai governments had agreed to expedite the widening and deepening of the Sungai Golok project at the border.

Mohd Yusoff said several past flood mitigation projects by the government such as in Alor Setar, Kedah have been effective in controlling the situation in flood-prone areas.

Meanwhile, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Geology Engineering and Soil Mechanics, Senior Lecturer Dr Nor Shahidah Mohd Nazer said the government’s plan to widen and deepen Sungai Golok is an appropriate measure to resolve the issue and ensure long-term capacity.

"However, the government must be careful of unremoved sediment build-up that could cause the river to become shallow and reduce water flow capacity. This could lead to overflow in other low flood-risk areas,” she said.

She added that the government should also emulate several overseas flood mitigation projects such as the ‘Metropolitan Outer Area Underground Discharge Channel’ in Japan which does not affect surface levels and can hold a large volume of water temporarily.

"We can also use the Marina Barrage technique used in Singapore. An interesting feature of this technique is that it can control both river and sea overflows.

"The Netherlands’ ‘Maaspark Ooijen-Wanssum’ is another example. It is a large-scale water catchment area that mimics a natural overflow ecosystem that does not use conventional flood mitigation techniques,” she said.

UPM Sociology professor, Datuk Dr Muhd Shatar, said society’s lack of concern for the environment leads to waste ending up in rivers and drains, clogging the waterways and making flood recovery difficult.

"As a society, we must be conscious of such matters. Bad drainage and clogged waterways are one of the main causes of floods,” he said.

Muhd Shatar said developments in Malaysia have been implemented with good drainage plans but due to the poor attitude and culture of society, it does not work as intended.

"If a more effective flood mitigation plan is implemented but it is not well maintained due to a poor attitude by a society that does not care for the environment, it will be hard to resolve the issue,” he said. — Bernama