ingenieur Vol.87 July-Sept2021 Vol 87 2021 | Page 8

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INGENIEUR

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INGENIEUR

Can Integrated River Basin Management Save Our Rivers ?

By Dato ’ Ir . Haji Nor Hisham bin Mohd Ghazali Dato ’ Ir . Haji Jamil bin Shaari Ir . Noor Aishah binti Zaharin Daniel Liew Yu Chuan Jabatan Pengairan dan Saliran Malaysia

On March 7 , 2019 , multiple reports emerged regarding a sudden wave of suspected gas or chemical poisoning involving three schools in Pasir Gudang , Johor . A subsequent investigation by the HAZMAT teams from the Department of Environment eventually ascertained that the source was from a location in Sungai Kim Kim where apparently tonnes of chemicals were dumped illegally . By April 14 , 2021 , 71 cases of poisoning were reported . This led to the temporary closure of 111 schools in the Pasir Gudang township and the indictment of three individuals under the Environmental Quality Act ( EQA ) 1974 . Sungai Kim Kim became a household name , and the nation was awakened to the reality of our rivers ’ vulnerability to pollution .

The Sungai Kim Kim incident demonstrates the challenge we face to protect our rivers . Despite over 25 years of Government river management programmes , river pollution incidents continue to occur , demonstrating that rivers have yet to acquire the reverence they deserve . Integrated River Basin Management ( IRBM ) has been adopted as the primary strategy towards a better river management since the Ninth Malaysia Plan . It is the management tool used to achieve the goals of Integrated Water Resources Management . This is especially true for Malaysia , where river water intakes account for more than 90 % of the domestic water supply . With river pollution as the main threat to this supply , how do IRBM Plans function as a holistic solution ?
River Pollution
River pollution is defined as the contamination of the natural river environment by the introduction of pollutants . Prior to release into the water system , wastewater must be treated according to approved standards . Pollution is frequently the result of illicit waste dumping , ignorance of standards of care , or the failure of existing regulated treatment systems to perform .
The problem is exacerbated by the growth of industry and urbanisation , as water intakes are now located downstream of industries such as poultry farms and palm oil mills . Had the upstream catchments been adequately protected , all that would flow downstream would be natural run-off . We can easily see that land use planning and water resources planning were not co-ordinated by tracing the rationale for siting water intakes versus industries and farms . Water intakes are typically located in upper catchments where the water quality is essentially Class I or II , according to national Water Quality Standards . The location of industries such as palm oil mills and agriculture farms is determined by the availability of agricultural land . This disconnect exists because all information is not presented contemporaneously . It is only natural that land will be needed as economic development progresses . The threat could have been realised if IRBM and its data inventory had been available . As development expands into the upper
6 VOL 87 JULY-SEPTEMBER 2021