Johor govt orders shut down of facility responsible for river pollution

KOTA ISKANDAR: The state government has ordered a fertiliser processing facility in Layang Layang and a poultry farm to shut down, for polluting the Johor river.
Johor Public Works, Rural and Regional Development Committee chairman Datuk Hasni Mohammad said the fertiliser processing facility was ordered to shut down with immediate effect, while the poultry farm was given six months' notice.
Hasni told a press conference that the decision to order the closure of both facilities was made at today's state exco meeting.
Hasni said the fertiliser processing facility was identified as the source of pollution in the Johor river which had led to the contamination of three water treatment plants in Semangar, Sungai Johor and Tai Hong in Kota Tinggi, which were forced to shut down last month due to ammonia pollution.
The two-day closure of the plants had resulted in water disruption to 360,000 households in Johor Baru and Kulai.
Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Executive Chairman Ismail Mohamed said the two facilities located side-by-side belong to the same owner.
The poultry farm has been in operation for 20 years, while the fertiliser processing facility has been in operation for two years.
According to Ismail, the machines used to process the fertiliser had broken down in the last month, resulting in heaps of chicken manure.
He said the fertiliser processing plant has been identified as the source of high levels of ammonia in the water in December 2016, Aug 22 and Oct 27 this year.
Ismail added that the Johor Water Regulatory Body (Bakaj) will issue a compound to the fertiliser processing facility.
Bakaj has also been tasked with monitoring three other poultry farms along the Johor river.
Following today's exco meeting, the state government has decided not to renew mining licences, especially for stone and sand mines located near water catchment areas.