Johor Ruler wants more patrols to stop water pollution

JOHOR BARU: As Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar calls on the authorities to step up patrols to prevent the illegal dumping of sludge within the state’s waters, more oil spills were spotted during the clean-up off Kota Tinggi.

The Johor Ruler said the recent incident in Tanjung Balau and Batu Layar in Kota Tinggi had negatively impacted the marine life and affected the livelihood of fishermen in the area.

“The authorities should step up patrols to check on such activities done illegally by tankers,” he said in a statement posted on his official Facebook page.

Sultan Ibrahim also suggested that stern action be taken against such polluters.

It was earlier reported that some 300 tonnes of marine fuel covering an area of about 10km had been detected in Tanjung Balau and Batu Layar.

Foreign tankers were believed to have dumped the oil, resulting in the spill at about 3pm last Wednesday.

Southern Region Marine Department on-scene commander Roslee Ibrahim said the oil spill was spotted in waters near the two areas on April 17, with the use of drones and satellite surveillance.

He added that 20 sacks of absorbent booms and 100 pieces of absorbent pads were used on the first day of the clean-up, which began on Thursday.

Yesterday, in Kota Tinggi, oil spills of about 300m were detected at 4.4 nautical miles off Tanjung Punggai by the clean-up crew after they ventured deeper into the ocean on the third day of operation.

Roslee said the spills were detected at 1.45pm.

“We are still conducting recovery work by spraying oil dispersants on the notified areas. The dispersant chemical was used after we received the green light from the DoE (Department of Environment),” he added.

He said the surveillance work had covered an area of 15 nautical miles starting from Tanjung Balau, Teluk Penawar, Teluk Punggai and Tanjung Penyusup up to Pulau Mungging.

“The oil spills were detected after we ventured another five nautical miles beyond Pulau Mungging and 4.4 nautical miles from Teluk Punggai.

“We have used 40 bales of absorbent booms stretching about 120m, aside from using oil dispersants to break up the oil molecules,” he explained.

Roslee said the clean-up work on the third day was rather challenging as they faced downpours with a strong wind of 25 knots.

The clean-up ended at about 6pm and resumes at 8am today.

“We are also waiting for another 40 bales of absorbent booms to be sent from our headquarters in Klang, so we need to return to the jetty before continuing our mission,” he said.

The authorities should step up patrols to check on such activities done illegally by tankers.

Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar