RIVER pollution in the west coast of Selangor has affected the livelihoods of fishermen, especially cockle farmers, in Klang, Kuala Selangor and Sabak Bernam.

Cockle harvests have declined by more than 90%, causing the farmers to turn elsewhere for income, they told The Malaysian Insight.

Kahar Buntal, 68, said subsistence fishermen in Kuala Selangor like him could no longer rely on cockles to supplement their income.

“We are certain the pollution stems from the factories, including the recycling processing plants,” he said.

Kahar, who has been cultivating cockles since 2008, the river turned black and emitted a foul smell  during hot weather and low tide.

“There are times when this situation goes on for a week. When we lodge a complaint, it (pollution) stops. If we don’t make noise about it, the pollution will continue,” Kahar said.

Kahar said sewage was also dumped into the river at night. “The effects can be seen until noon,” he said.

Fishermen are also feeling the effects of the pollution on their bodies with many suffering itchy skin, especially around the legs.

“If I walk in the water, my legs turn black. Many of my friends go to the clinic because of itchy skin. I also suffer the same,” he said, showing his ankles that were scarred from scratching.

The Selangor government in 2008 embarked on a cockle farming project with the participation of local fishermen.

Two hundred lots of cockle farms were created over about 10,000ha of land, with five to 10 fishermen assigned to each lot of roughly 50ha.

Each participant was to earn around RM2,500 to RM3,000 a month from the farms.

Data from the Malaysian Fisheries Department, however, showed a sharp decline in cockle collection in 2010, two years after the project was launched.

About 41,000 metric tonnes of cockles were produced in 2010. Five years later in 2015, production had dropped to a mere 3,300 metric tonnes.

Kahar said the farms yielded lucrative results at the early stage with fishermen drawing RM10,000 to RM15,000 each cockle season.

The situation changed when the river waters started getting polluted.

Their income has now dropped to about RM1,000 a season.

“Now we cannot store cockles (in the farms). Food resources (for cockles) are less due to pollution.

“Fortunately our cockles are still safe to eat but the yield is smaller and the price has increased,” said Kahar.

Another cockle farmer, Azmi Hassan, 49, said he had to stop farming because he could no longer afford the high losses.

Azmi said he lost RM600,000 between 2010 and 2012 because the cockles he bred died.

“It’s all because of pollution. I can’t stand it anymore,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Azmi said the revenue from his cockle farm was not enough to cover the costs.

Breaking point

Azmi admitted he had recourse to an illegal cockle farm because his former cockle lot was in a polluted river waterway.

“Now I have a cockle farm near the mangrove forest because when there is pollution, the area is not severely affected.

“Now I can harvest about 70% of the cockle seeds that I sow in the illegal lot,” he said.

When yield was abundant, the cockle landing jetty in Sg Buloh Sasaran used to process about 500kg of the mollusc a day.

Cockle collector Rohayu Abdul Aziz, 32, said that has now dwindled to about 30kg per day.

“Due to the shortage of cockles, prices are high,” she said.

Fishermen sell the cockles at RM5 per kg to middlemen who sell them to markets in Kuala Lumpur and Negri Sembilan at arouhnd RM8-12 per kg.

Rohayu said due to high demand, she has had break the Fisheries Department’s rules on the minimum size of the cockles that are allowed to be sold. 

There should only be 70 to 90 cockles per kg but “the size is smaller now, about 200 cockles per kg. We have to harvest them early because if we leave them too long, they will die,” she said.

Kahar said the fishermen and cockle farmers feared pollution would continue to affect the quality of cockles.

“River pollution will affect these cockles with chemicals settling in the mud.

“We produce food here and we do not want to be blamed for this pollution. We will be accused of using illegal chemicals to help our cockles grow,” he said.

Kahar said those affected by the river pollution had to find new sources of income.

Some of them serve as tourist guides to the area which rich biodiversity lends itself well to activities such as bird watching.

Sg Buloh Sasaran is where the tourists land to enjoy the sight of the “sky mirror” phenomenon, when the still waters reflect the sky.

“These days we take tourists for bird-watching and fishing to increase our income,” said Kahar.

Rohayu has resorted to selling cakes while Azmi looks to sell fish to saltwater fishing ponds in Klang.

The Selangor government last week presented proposed amendments to the Selangor Water Management Board (LUAS) Enactment 1999 in the state legislative assembly.

Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari warned that offenders who caused river pollution in Selangor could be fined up to RM1 million.

The proposed amendment also provides for a minimum fine of RM200,000 and a maximum jail term of three years for the convicted party..

Early this month, a large swathe of the Klang Valley, including Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, lost their water supply after four water treatment plants were shut due to contamination of Sg Selangor.

Five people were charged with disposing of hazardous waste in Sg Gong, Rawang. – September 29, 2020.