River Care Programme Tackles Pollution In Upper Kinta River Basin

IPOH, Aug 25 (Bernama) -- Each year, thousands of tonnes of sediment and eroded soil from roadside slopes are washed away over a 15-kilometre distance into the Sultan Azlan Shah Dam, downstream of the Upper Kinta River Basin, which provides the main water supply for the city of Ipoh.

The sediment is increasingly filling up the dam, with the Perak Water Board having to spend up to RM2.5 million annually to remove the deposits from the dam.

Global Environment Centre (GEC) director Faizal Parish said a study conducted by the organisation found that the pollution of the water source was partly due to the construction of the Simpang Pulai to Cameron Highlands road.

He explained that the road was built across a water catchment area, namely the Bukit Kinta Forest Reserve, which has disrupted the ecological system, leading to soil erosion over the past 20 years.

“We involved the local Orang Asli to undertake a complete survey from the dam through the forest to the road to identify the source of sediment in the Upper Kinta River Basin in 2019 and 2020,” he said at a community-led river conservation initiatives programme here recently.

Following the assessment, Faizal said the centre, along with representatives from 35 government agencies through a committee chaired by the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID), initiated an effort from 2020 to 2022 to develop a strategy for the overall management of the Upper Kinta Basin.

"This includes forest protection, erosion control, river and slope monitoring, as well as improving community welfare and developing ecotourism. After that, the responsible agencies took action to support the implementation of this strategy," he said.

He added that the Public Works Department (PWD) led the erosion control work, and the GEC supported this effort through a demonstration project on soil bioengineering by using trees and other plants to stabilise the eroding slopes. 

According to Faizal, the initiative has made good progress, but much more needs to be done to address the problem, which requires the involvement of multiple stakeholders and coordination of actions.

"We did not find other pollutants above the dam, but downstream of the river towards the city of Ipoh, there are more pollutants from industrial areas and business premises, including restaurants and car workshops.

"In some tributaries, it is significant, but overall, the main river passing through Ipoh city has shown some improvements in the last five years,” he said.

The GEC also organised a River Care Programme aimed at educating community representatives on the river ecosystem, as well as the management, care, and income opportunities through river sustainability.

Its senior programme officer Norazrin Mamat said that the organisation emphasised the concept of recycling and composting organic waste such as fruit peels and vegetable scraps to produce fertiliser as an effort to preserve the river.

-- BERNAMA