A Quick Overview of Waste Management within My Neighbourhood (Petaling Jaya)

A) Waste Collection

According to Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MBPJ), Kamaluddin Enterprise is the waste collector company which is responsible for the waste collection of condominiums (un-landed houses). On the other hand, the waste collectors for landed houses such as bungalows, single and double storey terraces are conducted by Ginching Maju Enterprise. Both of the waste collectors are the authorized waste collectors by MBPJ.

Typically in condominiums, a trash bin will be provided by the condominium management in the communal thrash room which located at each end of the floors. All these wastes are then being transported to the thrash house by the condominium cleaners daily before the waste are being collected for disposal. Subsequently, the wastes are being collected daily including Sunday between 10 am and 12 noon by Kamaluddin Enterprise.

On the other hand, the waste bins are located outside their house for all of the bungalows, single and double storey terraces (landed houses). Most of the waste bins in landed houses are self-supplied by the residents themselves. Besides, I could observe that there are so many different types of bins found in each house. In fact, there are also certain houses that have no waste bins outside their house. Normally, most of the residents packed their waste using plastic bags and only bring out their wastes during the waste collection days (three times a week) on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The waste collection for landed houses is commonly done between 8 am and 12 noon.

B) Major Environmental Problems Due to Improper Waste Disposal  

The high generation of food waste in my residential areas (Petaling Jaya) is not a significant environmental problem but if it is not well managed, it will contribute to the many environmental problems. Personally, I have conducted few site visits around my residential areas and I could identify several environmental problems which include waste littering such as like illegal dumping of waste. Despite waste littering, there are also loads of food wastes that are clot together with other waste at the drains which eventually causing drainage blockage. Another major environmental problem that I could observe is the bad odour pollution that comes directly from the illegal dumping sites around my residential areas.

Nonetheless, Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MBPJ) also given an unofficial statement that waste is not a serious matter around Petaling Jaya as most of the residents here are still doing fine with environmental problems because most of them are educated people. As according to Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MBPJ), the separation of waste at source is critically important but unfortunately there is still no proper frameworks are done till present.

Alternatively, I have also randomly asked few of the local residents in Petaling Jaya about waste segregation at source. The replied was rather positive as most of the residents of Petaling Jaya are willing to segregate their waste in their residential area given that they are supplied with proper facilities and information. Among few constraints of waste separation are mainly due to the minimum awareness and lack of knowledge where most of them do not know anything about it. There might be a small number of residents who know a little bit about waste separation but they were never given any proper education and guidelines on how to conduct waste separation in a correct manner.

Another possible constraint will be no waste separator bins facilities provided in the residential area for them to carry out waste separation at source. Nevertheless, the lack of enforcement where there are no laws and regulations specifically on waste separation from the state government and local authorities will be another additional challenge that need to be tackle.

 COMMENTS AND FEEDBACKS

The Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MBPJ) should encourage public to reduce generation of unnecessary food wastage. The increase in food wastage causes the rise in unconsumed food that lead to major economic value losses in the residential areas. Excessive generation of waste also causes many others waste management problems to be more complicated. The reduction of food wastage simply refers to finish off all the edible food in their meals. By doing so, the amount of waste that will be sent to landfill can be reduced and waste management problems in Petaling Jaya will be minimized.

Besides, the residents of Petaling Jaya are highly recommended to conduct waste separation as according to food waste and non-food waste at home. Separation of waste at source helps to enhance the waste sorting speed by the authority for waste recycling and waste recovery at transfer stations. However, the waste separation requires the full cooperation from the public they play a major roles in improving the waste management system.

Nevertheless, the residents of Petaling Jaya should be educated to understand the negative effects of illegal dumping. If illegal dumping can be avoided, most of the environmental problems found in the residential areas such as bad odour pollution and pest attacks can be minimized. Besides, it will also create healthier surroundings for the residents living around Petaling Jaya.

Therefore, the local authorities? (MBPJ) actions are very crucial in order to continuously improve the waste management system in Petaling Jaya. The local authorities should provide proper waste facilities for the public in turn to urge the public to participate in waste separation at home. For instance, the Petaling Jaya Municipal Council (MBPJ) can provide waste separator bins to the residents in Petaling Jaya to encourage them to conduct waste separation at home.

Moreover, with the establishment of laws and regulations specifically on waste separation at source will be one of the most effective instruments to control the attitude and the behavior of the people in Malaysia with regards to the waste management system. Thus, all other relevant authorities should also focus on formulating stringent laws and enforcement on waste management in the country.

Last but not least, every party including the government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should take their initiatives to promote public awareness on waste minimization by organizing interesting campaigns and activities. The participations of the public in these environmental-caring activities will surely boost up their awareness on the current situation of waste management problems in their surrounding area.