Keep Kuching city clean

Wanton trash disposal impedes cleanliness drive

KUCHING is known to be a liveable city, counting among its attributes the blending of old world charm and modern vibrancy as well as unity in diversity that enhances its status as a “City of Unity” and a “City with a Soul.”

Kuching is also known for its cleanliness — thanks to the local councils which have striven to make the State capital one of the cleanest cities in the country.

However, despite efforts to keep the city clean, there is still room for improvement, particularly in areas, occupied by shophouses bustling with eateries and kopi tiam (coffee shops).

Littering and dumping of trash is rampant at these commercial areas. Throwaways spilling out of garbage bins are a common sight and the general antipathy towards cleanliness is making it difficult for the local councils and refuse-disposal company, Trienekens (Sarawak) Sdn Bhd, to maintain cleanliness in the city.

Apart from the overpowering stench, wantonly discarded garbage also poses a health hazard by attracting disease-carrying vermins and risking the outbreak of diseases.

Kuching South City Council (MBKS) mayor Datuk James Chan said there is no doubt Kuching is well-known for its cleanliness.

“But just like other cities in the world, cleanliness can still be improved, especially at shophouses in certain business areas in and around Kuching,” he told thesundaypost.

He said the Council which takes cleanliness of the city very seriously, has implemented many by-laws through its Public Health and Licensing Committee and taken anti-littering and dumping measures such as daily sweeping, regular drain flushing and Additional Collection Request (ACR) service.

“These are supported by routine inspections from health officers, and health education programmes, conducted by the Council’s Food Unit to ensure food premises in Kuching comply with licensing requirements and are up to standard.

“All business entities such as shophouses, be they under MBKS or DBKU jurisdiction, are each allocated one 240-litre wheel bin by Trienekens.

“For shophouses operating as kopi tiam which generate more waste than their bins can cope, the operators can always apply for our ACR service, meant for businesses putting out large amount of waste. It has proven effective in solving spillage problems.

“There are various options available to the applicant such as whether to have additional bin(s) or increased disposal frequency ranging from two to six times per week,” Chan explained.

The applicant will have to pay for the additional waste collections and the monthly charges are based on the size of the wheel bins and the frequency of collections per week.

For instance, under MBKS, an eatery outlet operator with a 240-litre wheel bin will have to pay RM179 monthly for waste collected four times a week.

The same (wheel bin and collection frequency) applies to Kuching North City Commission (DBKU) albeit the charges are different.

“The ACR monthly charges vary with each Council. For shophouse owners or operators with a 240-litre wheel bin, the fee starts from RM167.60 per month with four waste collections per week,” DBKU mayor Datuk Abang Abdul Wahab Abang Julai said.

He added that shophouse owners or operators under DBKU could request ACR service for up to seven collections per week.

Currently, the standard waste collection for premises under both Councils is carried out by Trienekens on a twice-weekly basis.

Trienekens chief operating officer Alice Lee said the amount of waste has no doubt increased over the years although not very significantly or consistently.

“In 2010, the average collection of municipal waste in Kuching city was approximately 450 metric tonnes a day.

“This slowly increased over the years (by about 10 metric tonnes annually) before stabilising at an average of about 500 metric tonnes per day in 2015 — until the present,” she added.

Now Trienekens services a domestic population of more than 600,000 with an average daily collection of 500 metric tonnes of municipal waste in Kuching Division (under the municipalities of MBKS, DBKU and Padawan Municipal Council (MPP), as well as several areas under the Serian District Council (MDS) such as Siburan, Beratok and Tapah.

Constantly monitoring

In line with the Council’s efforts to keep the city clean and pleasant, Abang Wahap stressed that DBKU, as the local authority administering the northern part of Kuching city, constantly monitors the cleanliness of areas under its jurisdiction.

“Verbal warnings as well as notices will be issued to shophouse owners or operators who fail to maintain cleanliness of their premises and comply with proper waste disposal procedures.

“DBKU can also take action by issuing notices to those who do not keep their premises clean, particularly when disposing of garbage in wheel bins,” he said.

According to Chan, under the Local Authorities (Cleanliness) By-Laws 1999, there are enough provisions to penalise offenders of indiscriminate waste dumping.

“However, MBKS always prefers the friendly approach by giving advice or verbal warnings first before issuing written notices. Penalising the offenders is always the last resort,” he said, adding that MBKS health officers are also constantly meeting with business proprietors to educate them on ways to reduce their waste through the 3R (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) programme.

He reminded operators, especially of food outlets, to act responsibly by overseeing and ensuring the cleanliness of their areas.

“The compound ought to be kept clean. This is not good only for health as a clean environment will also attract business and boost profitability.”

Despite the availability of ACR service, Chan said there were still business operators who refused to apply for it because they wanted to save money.

“This kind of mindset not only impedes our cleanliness drive but also contributes to dirty shophouse backlanes and overflowing garbage bins.”

He called on the people to be the eyes and ears of the Councils by reporting the culprits to the Councils’ respective hotlines to enable the enforcement units to act.

Chan stressed the city should not be put in a situation where the Councils along with Trienekens have to clean and clean while irresponsible people throw and throw, leading to a never-ending clean-throw cycle with filthy, over-stuffed bins continuing to be an eyesore.

“If we love and consider Kuching as our city and our home, we must all be responsible and contribute towards a better Kuching.

“With concerted effort, we can make Kuching a city that is safe, clean and beautiful. The Councils alone will not be able to lift Kuching to world class standard in terms of cleanliness,” he said.