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Waste management company Alam Flora Sdn Bhd said there was a need to raise awareness and educate residents about cleanliness and the correct practices of household waste disposal.

Alam Flora chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Zain Hassan said the problem of “flying rubbish”, where residents indiscriminately threw out rubbish from their balconies and windows, was apparent in neighbourhoods where the majority of residents were foreign workers or immigrants.

“Of course, cases of rubbish being thrown out of balconies and windows occur in low-cost apartments and condominiums as well.

“However, the situation is under control in those premises. The problem is more critical at shophouses, where the majority of residents are foreign workers,” said Zain.

Alam Flora identified 12 critical hotspots of the “flying rubbish” problem in the Kuala Lumpur city centre.

The hotspots are in the back alleys of shophouses in Lorong TAR2, Lorong Haji Taib 2, Lorong Kalong, Lorong Baba in Pudu, Lorong Kancil, Lorong Landak, Jalan Kundur, Jalan Semilang in Taman Tenaga, Jalan Cerapu, and Jalan Manis 3 in Taman Segar.

Zain also said Alam Flora was forced to conduct a cleanup at the back alleys of the shophouses up to three times a day and six times a week due to the large amount of rubbish.

“During a recent cleanup in Jalan Semilang, for instance, our workers collected about two tonnes of rubbish.

“This included about 500kg to 800kg of rubbish on the ground and about 1.5 tonnes of rubbish, which were stuck on the awnings of shophouses,” he said.

Zain said a different approach was required to raise awareness and educate foreign workers on cleanliness and household waste disposal.

“Our efforts include putting up posters and banners and distributing flyers in the area in the languages spoken by the foreign workers, who are mostly from Myanmar and Bangladesh. Some of these litterbugs were Rohingya,” he said.

“We are trying to engage with the owners and tenants of these premises.

“This will allow them to better understand the situation,” he said.

Zain said Alam Flora was willing to cooperate and contribute its expertise should the authorities plan to conduct short courses to raise awareness and educate foreign workers on the issue.