PORT KLANG: Malaysia is putting a stop to the practice of dumping foreign garbage on its soil.
For a start, 60 containers filled with 3,000 tonnes of garbage will be shipped off to their countries of origin in the near future.
The first phase of the operation began by getting rid of 10 containers, filled to the brim with 450 tonnes of contaminated plastic waste. They originated from the United States, Japan, Canada, Australia, China, Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh.
The containers have been stuck at Westports Malaysia in Pulau Indah here since April last year. In addition, five containers have been sent back to Spain on April 29, while 50 other containers that have been brought in illegally are being inspected.
The Environmental Quality Act 1974 was enforced against the importers, made up of local players, beginning yesterday. A notice would be served on them with the instruction to start the process of shipping the containers back to the countries of origin (exporters).
The importers will have 14 days to complete the procedure of sending back the contaminated plastic waste. They have to bear the shipping and storage costs.
If they fail to do so, they risk legal action being taken against them.
Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin had yesterday inspected the containers to be shipped off at Westports Malaysia.
Having seen first-hand the amount of contaminated, non-homogeneous, low quality and non-recyclable plastic waste which was bound for processing facilities that do not have the technology to recycle them in an environmentally-sound manner, Yeo was visibly angry.
“I am very angry. I want to send this back. This (bread bag) plastic is from Canada. It is consumed in Canada and people diligently separate their waste to help the environment, but it ended up here instead,” Yeo said.
She said the containers were illegally brought into Malaysia under false declaration and other offences, which clearly violated the environmental law.
Yeo discovered milk bottles from Australia that were infested with dead maggots, electronic waste, electrical cables, wires, as well as a Carrefour supermarket plastic bag scrap.
One container from Bangladesh contained large bags of CDs, while another from China was found to have been filled with illegal waste but wrapped with clean packaging to mislead the authorities.
Yeo said the ministry, through the Department of Environment, had inspected 123 containers from countries such as the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, Norway and France. The process is ongoing.
At a press conference later, Yeo said the ministry’s one-month investigation had discovered that a recycling company in the United Kingdom had been exporting contaminated plastic waste to Malaysia for the past two years.
“In a span of two years, the company had exported 1,000 containers containing more than 50,000 tonnes of plastic waste. Citizens of the United Kingdom believe it is done for recycling purposes, but the waste is instead dumped in our country.
“This is serious as Malaysians are suffering from the consequences of air and water pollution. It is unfair and uncivilised.
“Malaysians have the right to clean air, clean water and sustainable resources.
“We urge the developed countries to review their management of plastic waste and stop shipping their garbage out to developing countries.”
Yeo cautioned that Malaysia would not hesitate to return the waste.
“We will fight back and not be bullied by developed countries. We view this seriously as it concerns our sovereignty and sustainability.”
She said the names of the recycling companies would be compiled to be sent to the respective governments, with calls made to take action.
Yeo added that other ports in Malaysia would be checked for containers with contaminated plastic waste.
She said Malaysians who had a hand in bringing in the foreign garbage were traitors to the country.
“Malaysians who import foreign garbage into Malaysia are traitors.
“They must be stopped and brought to justice.
“The government and our foreign counterparts have the responsibility to ensure that transboundary garbage does not happen again,” she said.