The Kedah government has seized the illegal dumpsite in Kampung Kemumbong, near Sungai Petani, which was highlighted in media reports.

This was done Sunday evening immediately after a visit to the area by the Sungai Petani Municipal Council and the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp), Kedah exco Tan Kok Yew told Bernama yesterday.

Tan said the seizure was undertaken to enable investigations under the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 to proceed and to determine the actual source of the waste. 

The waste is believed to have been contaminating Sungai Muda since 2008, and affected about 500 residents living nearby.

The media reported on Sunday that the owner of a piece of land located by Sungai Muda, who had allowed at least 30 lorries to dump waste on a 1.4ha plot of his land every day, for a fee as low as RM20 per lorry.

The waste, believed to be from Penang, included chemical waste, plastics, and car and electronic parts.

Tan said action would also be taken against the landowner and gave an assurance that all waste in the area would be cleared once tests on water samples from Sungai Muda were completed. 

He said investigations would be conducted transparently, with no interference from any parties.

- Bernama