JOHOR BARU: Odour pollution in several areas around the district over the past few weeks has been identified as originating from non-halogenated organic solvents (SW 322) and halogenated organic solvents (SW 323).
Johor State Health and Environment committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said that samples tested from the Malaysia Chemical Department, taken in the Tiong Nam Industrial Park and Tropika Industrial Area, confirmed the source.
He said following the discovery, a special team was established consisting of the Department of Environment (JAS), police, and local authorities (PBT) is conducting a major inspection operation on over 150 factories in the district that are listed as producing the waste.
"Thus far, we have found that this waste material is widely used in industries such as plastics, food production, and packaging.
"Efforts to locate the involved factories are actively ongoing," Ling said after the National 2024 World Rivers Day Celebration at Sungai Tebrau this morning. Additionally, he said that the cleanup work at Tiong Nam Industrial Park and Tropika Industrial Area is expected to be fully completed by tomorrow.
"These two locations for illegal chemical waste disposal are in the final phase of cleanup. The process is going smoothly, and we hope to finish this cleanup by tomorrow," he told Bulletin TV3.
Recently, several locations including Kampung Melayu Pandan, Taman Daya, Taman Istimewa, Taman Mount Austin, Desa Tropika Industrial Area, Kampung Maju Jaya, Kampung Tawakal, and Kampung Plentong Baru have experienced significant odour pollution, leading to a sharp decline in air quality.
This has been traced back to the illegal dumping of chemical waste into the rivers in the affected areas.