JOHOR BARU, March 9 — The black spots in Sungai Kim Kim in Pasir Gudang, near here, recently have been identified as being non-hazardous waste materials discharged by various factories nearby, said Environment and Water Minister Datuk Seri Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man.
“Actually what happened was not toxic waste pollution,” he said in denying an allegation in a newspaper report yesterday that the black spots were from the discharge of toxic wastes.
“From the samples taken, we found that they were actually just normal pollution (discharge) from factories and not hazardous to the residents, unlike the pollution that happened in 2019.”
He told reporters this after visiting Sungai Kim Kim in Jalan Keluli 10 here today to check on the allegation that the black spots in the river could possibly involve the discharge of more toxic chemical wastes compared to the tragedy that occurred two years ago.
He said that if the latest “pollution” had happened for the past one month, as reported, then surely the Department of Environment (DOE) would have found out as “Sungai Kim Kim is the main one monitored by the DOE of Johor”.
Meanwhile, he said the ministry would focus on working together with the community, such as the private sector, universities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), in driving efforts to control pollution in the river through the Sungai Kim Kim Trail project.
The project, which began today, is expected to revitalise the previously polluted Sungai Kim Kim. — Bernama
