RESIDENTS of Kampung Rugarding in Tuaran have urged authorities to investigate and act against those responsible for dumping chemicals into Sungai Lingkibing, which they alleged had been going on for the past five years.

A villager, Matnih Teu, 57, told Bernama that the chemical dumping has become more rampant over the past few months and has caused the polluted river to emit an unpleasant odour.

The stench can be detected from his residence, located 50 metres from the river bank and apart from that, the river would turn black with an oily sheen and kill the fish within.

“Dumping (of chemicals) is not a daily occurrence, it happens at certain times and the Department of Environment is aware and have taken water samples. But nothing has changed and the dumping continues,” he said when met in Rugarding Village.

He added that the chemicals were believed to have been dumped by factories and a residential construction site near the village. 

“The river stretches till Sungai Gayang where the villagers scour for clams (lokan), catch fish, crabs and prawns but now with the pollution it is difficult to find food,” Matnih said.

The same concern was shared by Sidup Latip, 60, as river pollution has become rampant there has been no stern action by the authorities to solve the problem till now.

He said the pollution not only affected the river ecosystem but also affected the health of villagers who complained of sore throats, cough, dizziness and nausea.

“I suggest that the parties (factories) involved set up ponds to treat their manufacturing waste before dumping it into the river,” he said, adding that he believed the pollution involved the dumping of thousands of litres of chemicals.

Rosviny Manap, 45, expressed her concern over the chemical dumping as heavy rains would cause the chemical waste to travel downstream through the village on its way to the sea.

The civil servant said even though her house was located 100m away from the river, she could still smell the stench, which has become a daily affair as the villagers struggled to live under such conditions.

She said the relevant authorities should take the issue seriously and help the villagers find the best solution to ensure the problem did not recur.

“I hope there will be action by the authorities because it makes no sense to release these chemicals in this area because this village has many residents, and although some officials do come, they end up offering no solutions,”  she said.

On Monday (May 9), the Sabah Fire and Rescue Department’s hazmat detector detected the presence of scheduled waste material in the river water after receiving an emergency call from MERS 999 at 6.34pm before a team was deployed to the river.

A survey by Bernama found that the river appeared blackish with oil and emitted a foul odour. – Bernama, May 12, 2022.