Xavier: I drink straight from tap
straight from the tap,” said Water, Land and Natural Resources Minister Dr Xavier Jeyakumar at the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
Stressing the good quality of water supplied from pipes in the country, he said, tap water was safe to drink because of the reliable filtering system at water treatment plants.
“The water that comes out of the taps in Malaysia can be consumed.
“If there is any problem, it is a localised issue and not caused by the (water treatment) plants.
“Water that comes out of (water treatment) plants throughout Malaysia is 100 per cent safe to drink.
“I drink straight from the tap.” Xavier was answering a supplementary question from Datuk Seri Ismail Mohamed Said (BN Umno-Kuala Krau), who had sought clarification over a statement by the ministry’s secretary-general that it was safe to drink water from the tap.
In replying to a supplementary question from William Leong Jee Keen (PH PKR-Selayang) on steps taken by the government to curb the impact of forest development, especially near water sources, Xavier said it was driven by environmental factors.
He said the ministry was working with law enforcement agencies at the state level to curb the effects of forest development.
“In Kedah, we cancelled logging contracts in Kuala Muda, as well as in Perlis and Penang, to curb the direct (adverse) impact of such (logging) activities on the operation of (river) dams.”
He said the government required at least 50 per cent of the forests in the country to be protected to ensure an ecological balance for the optimum production of water supply through dams.
“Our forests cover 53.2 per cent of the country, including Sabah and Sarawak, but we would fail to achieve the minimum target if we depend only on ‘green areas’ in the peninsula.
“States need to play their role to ensure that our forest cover does not fall below 50 percent,” he said.