Johor River’s turbidity level hits 37,400 NTU, far above the 400 NTU norm, after a mining washing pond burst, risking water supply.
JOHOR BAHRU: The turbidity level of raw water at the Johor River Basin has surged dramatically to 37,400 Nephelometric Turbidity Units, far exceeding the normal level of 400 NTU.
Johor Public Works, Transport, Infrastructure and Communications Committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said the incident followed the bursting of a washing pond at an inland mining site in Kota Tinggi.
He stated that ground movement caused the sixth sand washing pond owned by a local company to burst, leading to pollution in the Johor River.
Monitoring by the Johor Water Regulatory Authority, the Irrigation and Drainage Department, the Department of Environment, the National Water Services Commission and Ranhill SAJ confirmed the elevated turbidity level poses a risk to the operations of several water treatment plants.
Facilities expected to be affected include the LRA Linggiu, LRA Semangar, LRA Sungai Johor and LRA PUB in Singapore.
Several areas could experience unscheduled water supply disruptions, including Senai, Skudai, Seelong, Felda Linggiu, Petri Jaya and Lima Kedai.
Water release from the Linggiu Dam has been increased to help dilute the contaminants and mitigate the impact of the pollution.
Alternative water supplies are being delivered via tankers to the affected areas as part of the response effort.
Mohamad Fazli said the state government views this incident seriously and will take strict action against those responsible for polluting the state’s water resources.
The Department of Environment confirmed yesterday that a bund silt pond from sand dredging activities upstream of the Johor River in Kota Tinggi had burst, leading to an immediate halt in operations.
Residents and fishermen in Kampung Orang Asli Sayong Pinang, Kota Tinggi, were among those affected by the pollution when hundreds of fish were found dead due to the muddy river. – Bernama
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