SHAH ALAM, 13 Feb: The State Government ordered the Selangor Water Management Authority (LUAS) to conduct cloud seeding at the Sungai Langat catchment area and is waiting for the right conditions, based on the views of the Malaysian Meteorological Department.
The Executive in charge of Tourism, Consumer Affairs and the Environment, Elizabeth Wong, said that so far, cloud seeding is rather difficult to be implemented as they are still searching for a suitable cloud.
She said that the State Government has also urged the public to not conduct any open burning to prevent haze in the worsening hot weather that the country is currently experiencing.
She said that cooperation from the community is needed to report any open burning to the Local Authorities or to the Department of Environment in order to avoid an even worse situation.
“Anyone caught and found guilty can be fined up to RM500,000 and may be sentenced to five years in prison,” she added.
Meanwhile, she said that the State Government is reviewing the proposal to increase the use of ammonial nitrogen from 1.5mg/litre to 2.5mg litre or an amount agreed by the Mile 11 Cheras Water Treatment Plant (WTP) and the Bukit Tampoi WTP due to the increase of ammonia caused by the decline in water levels due to the hot weather.
“The estimated RM350,000 a month has been decided upon at a special meeting on 4 February to solve it by increasing the ventilation rate for water treatment and the use of chemicals that are temporary in nature,” Elizabeth said in a press statement after the Exco Meeting yesterday.
According to her, the long-term solution will involve a cost of RM5 million, with the estimated time for replacement and installation to be from six to eight months.
