Microbes used to ‘eat’ rubbish in drains
Microbes (E.M) is being used to “eat” rubbish in drains and rid them of the bad odours in Tamparuli, while residents were urged to do compos ng using E.M to break down kitchen waste into organic ma er.
TAMPARULI: A change in mindset and sharing of responsibility is needed in order to maintain cleanliness in the town area here.
Tuaran MP Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau said there could be technology that could assist, such as turning garbage into organic materials and ridding foul smell associated with it, but in the end it was really up to the community.
“Everybody must play their role and become part of the solutions,” he said at the Zero Rubbish Awareness Campaign and Dialogue session with the people at the market here yesterday.
Tangau, who is also the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, said that without cooperation from the community the problem would always be there.
“During my rounds at this town, I can see the same old problems - rubbish, clogged drains and foul smell.
“Most recently, during the Gotong Royong Perdana, I chose to go to the market because it’s smelly,” he said, adding that he found the drain water was not flowing despite efforts to pump it out.
The root of the problem was later found to be a mattress stuck at the drainage outlet. It was later taken out by Tangau together with the others in the gotong royong.
It was at that time, Tangau suggested the usage of technology through effective microbes (E.M) that literally “eats” all the rubbish in the drainage and rid it of the bad odours.
He also called upon the residents to do composting using E.M as its main ingredient to break down kitchen waste into organic matter.
A demonstration was earlier held on how to build the compost pile using the ingredients from Japan called Bookashi.
Towards this end, Tangau said technology had become an integral part as far as cleanliness was concerned.
He said for instance the Malaysia Standards Department under his ministry had actually formulated a standard for cleaning contractors since 2014 known as ‘Malaysian Standards (M.S) 2550:2014 - Cleaning Performance - Commercial and Public Buildings.’
“Previously we used to look at the company that has the most number of cleaners but now with the MS, company is being looked at its efficiency in cleaning or how clean they can clean.
“This is the way forward whereby a cleaning company is now being evaluated by performance-based assessment that encourages the use of technology in the cleaning industry,” he said.
Later, Tangau and the community leaders poured E.M liquid into the drainage at the market.