Malaysia snarled in plastic mess

Malaysia snarled in plastic mess

By Bob Khan

KUALA LUMPUR (UPI): Malaysia's economic boom has become entangled in a plastic-packaged environmental nightmare. You can see it most clearly in the virtual mat of multi-colored garbage that bobs along the Klang River flowing through the capital.

Plastic bags, cellophane wrap, drinking straws, plastic foam fast-food boxes -- they are the cast-offs of an increasingly prosperous society and Malaysians are paying a price.

From the big cities to remote villages of the Asian nation, the government has been fighting a losing battle against the plastic glut, with very limited success. Ahmad Fuad Embi, river engineering director for Kuala Lumpur's Drainage and Irrigation Department, says some 100 tons of trash are fished out of the Klang each day, most of it plastic. He is frustrated with the clear failure of a much-touted river clean-up program launched in 1993.

"Since the launch of the campaign, the amount of rubbish we have to collect from the rivers has increased instead of declining," Ahmad lamented.

"People do not seem to understand that whatever they throw in the drains and rivers will accumulate into a huge bulk of rubbish."

The amount of plastic dumped in the river has been so great that it has become permanently embedded in the river floor. Even a monster sand-removal machine developed in Australia, known as the "Water Master," was unable to complete a dredging project because of the plastic build-up.

"The sand in the rivers had actually become very deeply layered with plastic," Ahmad said.

Malaysia has one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Its gross domestic product has reported a growth of more than 8 percent annually for the past eight years. Its 19.2 million people have a per capita annual income of US$2,227.

Beyond the rivers, Malaysia's plastic explosion is also endangering its surrounding oceans. Li Ching Lim, scientific officer for the World Wildlife Fund of Malaysia, said the refuse poses a massive threat to sea life.

"Plastic bags can smother coral reefs and can suffocate and strangle marine animals such as turtles and marine mammals," Li said. "Leatherback turtles, for example, may mistake plastic bags for their diet -- the jellyfish -- and die after ingesting them."

Even if awareness of these problems are raised, the plastic already in Malaysia's environment will remain part of the country's landscape for a long time. The plastic trash is not bio-degradable, so it is immune to the bacteria and fungi that consume organic materials.

While the country has been consulting international experts in garbage disposal, solutions are elusive.

Incineration, used to destroy other wastes, is not a safe option for the plastic because of the toxins emitted when it is burned.

Depending on the type of plastic involved, hazardous gases, including dioxin, carbon monoxide, ammonia and hydrogen cyanide are among the byproducts produced by burning plastic, according to Chee Ong Koh, forensics director for Malaysia's Chemistry Department.

Increasingly, Malaysia is looking to recycling and getting support from business and local governments.

Various municipalities in Malaysia have begun rigorous efforts to collect plastics, glass, paper and aluminum and steel cans for re-use. They are trying desperately to deal with the costs that relate to the need to separate garbage streams and transport bulky plastic items to recycling plants. Plastic also declines in quality each time it is recycled.

Christina Hashim, founder of the Trees organization, which stands for "Treat Every Environment as Special," says it will take a radical transformation of consumer attitudes to make any dent in the plastic overload.

"We often get lazier as we get richer," she said, "because we can throw away things and can afford to buy new ones."