KUALA LUMPUR, July 24 — The Housing and Local Government Ministry has revoked the approved permits (AP) on the importation of the HS Code 3915 plastic waste for three months, effective yesterday, of 114 companies and factories nationwide.
Its minister, Zuraida Kamaruddin, said the move was taken following newspaper reports on the serious pollution in Kuala Langat, Selangor, purportedly caused by factories involved in processing plastic waste.
She instructed all local government authorities to conduct checks to ensure only factories with valid APs continued with their operations of plastic waste management in accordance with the international environmental standards and guidelines.
“Within this three months, factories whose permit has been revoked should re-apply where there’ll be new criteria to be observed to ensure no power abuse and breach of standards and regulations” she told a media conference at the Parliament lobby today.
Among the criteria, she said, was the need for them to obtain compliance letter from the Department of Environment (DOE), premise licence from the local authority, recommendation from the Solid Waste management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp) and to show proof that their import of plastic waste is homogeneous, clean and not scheduled waste.
Zuraida said the ministry, through the National Solid Waste Management Department (NSWMD), would form a task force to review procedures and policy on the importation of Code 3915 plastic waste.
It would be chaired by NSWMD director-general Ismail Mokhtar and the members would comprise the DOE, Royal Customs Department, International Trade and Industry Ministry, Malaysian Investment Development Board (MIDA) and SWCorp, she added. — Bernama
