Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change and Environment Minister Yeo Bee Yin speaks to reporters at the Parliament lobby in Kuala Lumpur March 14, 2019. — Picture by Ahmad Zamzahuri
Its minister Yeo Bee Yin said efforts were being made to save 20 rivers in the state, which were classified as polluted, to avoid a similar incident that happened at Sungai Kim Kim in Pasir Gudang. “The Pasir Gudang industrial area is a developing area, so we want to regulate the amount of chemical waste from the factories,” she said in an interview in conjunction with Pakatan Harapan’s first anniversary as the government.
Based on the 2017 Environmental Quality Report, 32 rivers are classified as polluted, out of the 417 rivers monitored by DOE nationwide.The chemical dumping in Sungai Kim Kim, which occurred recently, affected the health of thousands of residents and also forced 111 schools in Pasir Gudang to be closed.