KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 11 — The Selangor State Legislative Assembly was told today how the improperly disposed scheduled waste that triggered water cuts for more than a million accounts over the last 24 hours was a reddish substance that smelled like jackfruit or buah nangka

Selangor executive councillor (exco) Hee Loy Sian, when answering Bukit Gasing assemblyman R. Rajiv during Oral Questions this morning, then revealed how the pungent smelling contaminant had purportedly first flowed into Indah Water Consortium’s (IWK) waste treatment plants as long ago as last Wednesday (November 4). 

Hee, who is also Selangor Tourism, Environment, Green Technology and Orang Asli Affairs Committee chairman, told the assembly that IWK only notified the National Water Service Commission (SPAN) of the situation immediately, with the latter then deciding to shut down the contaminated plants and remove the waste manually using lorries to another location. 

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“IWK received the chemical waste from November 4, last Wednesday. They started receiving this waste that was red in colour and smelled like buah nangka which quickly filled all their plants. 

“However, we are surprised why the state government was not informed, Luas (Selangor Water Management Authority), or Air Selangor were also not informed. 

“If we found out about this earlier, we would have acted immediately to identify the premises or factory behind all of this,” he told the assembly. 

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Selangor executive councillor Hee Loy Sian told the assembly that IWK allegedly failed to notify the National Water Service Commission of the situation immediately, with the latter then deciding to shut down the contaminated plants and remove the waste manually using lorries to another location.  — Picture by Firdaus Latif
Selangor executive councillor Hee Loy Sian told the assembly that IWK allegedly failed to notify the National Water Service Commission of the situation immediately, with the latter then deciding to shut down the contaminated plants and remove the waste manually using lorries to another location. — Picture by Firdaus Latif

Hee, who personally visited the affected sites yesterday, explained that investigations revealed the scheduled waste pollutants that ended up in IWK’s plants were thought to have been disposed of by the culprits through the toilet of a shop lot located only 700 metres from Sungai Gong. 

“There was a hose (in the toilet) that we found that we believe was used. 

“They had used the manhole first but then moved to the shoplot’s toilet, so it would be difficult to detect them, which then flowed into IWK’s plants who also became a victim,” he said. 

Hee said the affected IWK plants have stopped operations since the pollutants were detected and are still dormant, adding how this was the fourth such incident of pollution that involved IWK’s plants. 

“IWK should be responsible for their premises. This is the fourth time; twice in Bukit Mahkota Semenyih, once in Batang Kali and now in Rawang,” he said. 

Yesterday, Luas announced that operations at the SSP 1, 2, 3 and Rantau Panjang water treatment plants had been suspended at about 12.20pm after odour pollution with a reading of about 8 TON (threshold odour number) was recorded from Sungai Selangor.

The shutdown affected 1,139,008 account holders in 1,279 areas in Kuala Lumpur, Petaling, Klang, Shah Alam, Kuala Selangor, Gombak and Kuala Langat.

Hee today added that the state government had requested some leniency for Air Selangor’s water treatment plants to be allowed to operate with a reading of 1 TON, but were rejected by Health Ministry officials present during the site visit who insisted on a 0 TON reading. 

He then said better cooperation is needed between state-run and federal agencies at such times, lamenting the decision by IWK to not inform the Selangor government of the pollution. 

*A previous version of this story contained errors which have since been corrected.