LAND acquisition problems are delaying the Sungai Pinang Basin Flood Mitigation project in Penang, said Natural Resources and Environment Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar. 

He said resettling the squatters also caused delays to the RM150 million project, which should have started last year.

Speaking after launching the World Rivers Day 2017 in Kuala Lumpur today, Wan Junaidi said the ministry gave an assurance that the project would be handed to the contractor in early January next year and was expected to be completed by 2020.

“The tender process is ready…the selection of contractor is being done. God willing, when ready, the project will reduce flooding. When it rains heavily like last week, the (flood) situation will not be as bad,” he said.

On another matter, Wan Junaidi said 33 of the 473 rivers in the country monitored by the Department of Environment had been identified  as polluted, and were mostly located in the city areas.

The polluted rivers include Sungai Juru and Sungai Jelutong in Penang, Sungai Penchala in the federal capital and Sungai Semenyih in Selangor. 

“The pollution is the result of industrial effluents and domestic sewage flowing into the rivers, as well as the irresponsible attitude of the public,” said Wan Junaidi. – Bernama, September 25, 2017.