MENTION Redang Island and pristine beaches with crystal clear seas come to mind.
However, these days when tourists arrive at the airport or the jetty and make their way to the many resorts on the island, they are greeted by piles of uncollected rubbish at every corner.
"This is a sad truth facing Redang Island today. A beautiful island is marred by poor management and apathy from the local council," said Johan Fradly, who is a regular traveller to the island.
"I come to Pulau Redang with my family very often. But I have been shocked by the filth at every street corner where there is a community bin. There is no regular collection or it is not supervised properly,"
Fradly added that although the number of foreign tourists has fallen because of travel restrictions imposed because of the Covid-19 pandemic, local tourists still made their way to the island. Have the local authorities forgotten this is a tourist destination? What about the local tourists who are here every weekend?" he added.
On top of the rubbish not being collected regularly, the residents of Redang Island are also not provided with household rubbish bins.
There are some 2,000 residents on the island who have to dispose of their garbage in community bins around the island.
"There is no separation of household waste and recyclable items, and the number of community bins around the island also needs to be increased," he added.
Berjaya Group founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan, who owns The Taaras Beach & Spa Resort located on the island, hopes the local council will step up and improve the cleanliness on the island.
"As far as I am concerned, this is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Let's do our part and work together to keep it clean," he said.
To help keep the island clean, Tan and his staff at The Taaras Beach & Spa Resort often organise clean-up sessions to collect rubbish along the beach as well as on smaller islands off Redang Island.
"This is not part of their job specification. But they are doing this out of their love for the island and care for the environment, because it is our duty to keep our beaches clean," said Tan.
Tan leads a group to help remove the rubbish every time he visits Redang Island.It is not uncommon to see him and his staff go snorkelling or swimming with the turtles and at the same time helping to clean up the beach.
But it has become increasingly frustrating for him to see the island becoming an eyesore for travellers who are seeking simple pleasures.
"We would have thought people would have learned from this pandemic, about how vital it is to retain the sanctity of our environment. Alas, we have not changed our habits and attitude at all," he said.
The author is a freelance writer