In less than a month, we will be saying goodbye to 2024. As we are racing against time, I can feel that our government is trying to steer the waste management industry’s practices towards a more madani (civilised) way.
Back in 2023, I was a little disappointed with the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) as they were still preaching in the parliament on recycling per se as the only way to resolve waste issues.
Thankfully, things are moving forward and I would say pretty aggressively in 2024 in terms of the implementation of more holistic policies and strategies. Here are what I have observed so far on some of the important development on waste management practices in Malaysia.
(1) Adoption of Solid Waste Act 672 by Selangor
The Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act 2007 (Solid Waste Act 672) is by far the most authoritative law to regulate waste management activities in Malaysia. However, the implementation of this act is only mandatory in seven states namely, Perlis, Kedah, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Malacca, Johore, Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
That means the implementation of law and policy are not uniformed in highly industrialised and touristy states such as Selangor and Penang, as well as Perak, Kelantan, Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak.
What’s so great about Act 672?
(a) Mandate waste to be disposed in Malaysia authorised sanitary landfills only
(b) Require waste generator and its collector to keep a record on waste-related info (e.g. types and weight of waste, data of collection, location of collection and disposal) for check and balance purposes
(c) Require segregation of waste to categories such as recyclables and non-recyclables
In March 2024, KPKT was in talks with Selangor on the adoption of Act 672. On the latest development (November 2024), Selangor state is finalising the ratification of Act 672 latest by early 2025. It takes some time for the state due to the complexity of the state’s organisation which involves 12 different local authorities (PBT). Through my working experience, I have personally experienced the differences as each PBT has their own set of approach, procedure and ruling on waste management
I am also looking forward to the enforcement of this law in Selangor as there are many heavy industries and commercial businesses that are contributing to the volume of waste to landfill. With the implementation of Act 672 which emphasises on segregation of waste at source, I anticipate more waste generators to be more mindful and interested to know their waste instead of passing the bulk of responsibilities to waste contractors – out of sight out of mind kind of attitude.
On top of that, this Act will help our waste management field to have a level playing field as private waste contractors must be registered and licensed under Solid Waste Corporation. We find this a boon because far too many contractors are disposing waste at illegal dumpsites, allowing them a leeway to charge cheaply in the market.
(2) Waste-to-Energy Plants at 18 Locations
We first heard about this proposal in May 2024.
I was feeling quite heavy-hearted about this and in fact dejected for our government’s unwitty move.
In my humble opinion, waste-to-energy (WtE) should be our very last resort, provided if we have done everything we could at the top of our head to avoid or minimize the creation of waste in our lifestyle.
Commissioning a so-called state-of-the-art WtE plant in order to address the limited space in landfill to me is deemed as an easy way out. Why? Because in my practice, we have helped many of our clients to divert their waste away from landfill through various means such as composting, recycling and up-cycling.
It can be done.
If we can do it as a private practitioner, I am sure the government can emulate our strategies. Not only that, there are far too many case studies out there that are warning us the possible risks of failures on WtE. Watch this.
But if this is the game that our government insists to play, please look out for these places where the government is proposing to build WtE plants. Make sure we do our part to monitor their activities and report the moment we observe anything unscrupulous.
| State | Location |
| Kedah | + Jabi + Padang Cina |
| Johor | + Bukit Payung + Seelong + Sedili |
| Pahang | + Jabor-Jerangau + Belenggu |
| Melaka | + Sungai Udang |
| Kuala Lumpur | + Rawang |
| Selangor | + Jeram + Tanjung 12 + Rawang 2 |
| Penang | + Pulau Burung |
| Perak | + Lahat + Taiping + Manjung |
| Terengganu | + Tertak Batu |
| Kelantan | + Jedok |
(3) Circular Economy in Solid Waste Management Blueprint 2025 – 2035
I finally heaved a sigh of relief when this was announced in August 2024.
The blueprint acts as a guideline for stakeholders to institutionalise circular economy in the management of waste.
Not only does this put us on par with other developed nations, this blueprint will shift our conventional linear economy towards circular economy. To me, this blueprint is an important catalyst to change our perception on waste as resource instead. The saying on one’s man trash is another man’s treasure remains bona fide and in fact will get more relatable in this century.
What are the differences between linear economy and circular economy?
The linear economy (also known as take-make-waste economy), is a model where resources are used to make products that eventually will be thrown away. The full potential and value of a product is not fully utilised and tends to move in one direction – from raw material to waste. This model is causing various global issues such as degradation of natural environment and climate change.
The circular economy on the other hand promotes production and consumption involving sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling existing materials and products as long as possible. It also aims to extend product’s life cycle and its value before considering it as a waste.
I can’t wait to see how these will unfold. More details below:
Government strategies and action plans
| Government Strategies | Action Plans (non-exhaustive list) |
| Governance and Legislation | (1) Streamlining the rules and regulations on waste management across all states (2) Drafting of relevant law to enable the implementation of EPR nationwide (3) Drafting of Circular Economy Act for the nation (4) Encouraging property developers to include recycling infrastructure as part of their development plan in housing and commercial area (5) Strengthening the licensing system for waste management |
| Guidelines and Procedures | (1) Drafting law that requires steps on how to recycle post-consumer packaging as part of product labeling requirement (2) Outlining guideline on best practices for an eco-friendly product design (3) Introducing zero-waste-to-landfill certification to manufacturer (4) Including circular economy elements in town planning and building design (5) Creating market demand for local recycled material |
| Waste management data system | (1) Identify an ideal digital platform that can integrate and streamline all the existing data systems by different PBTs (2) Creation of e-commerce platform for the sales and buy-back of recyclables between consumers and recyclers |
| Infrastructures and Facilities | (1) Establishment of Waste-to-energy facility (2) Establishment of material recovery facility (MRF) and integrated waste management facility (IWMF) (3) Upgrading sanitary landfill to include MRF |
| Market Creation | (1) Provide tax incentives, subsidy or grant for companies that manufactured products using recycled material. (2) Pay-as-you-throw scheme in commercial and industrial sectors to reduce waste to landfill (3) Promote investment on facilities to research on creation of new raw material using recyclables |
If you are interested to read the blueprint:
(4) Drive-Through Recycling Centres at Shopping Malls
Starting next year, KPKT will explore the possibility of requiring all shopping malls to set up Drive-Through Recycling Centres, or at the very least, provide recycling facilities as part of the conditions for obtaining a business licence.
Nga Kor Ming
👏 ♻️ 👏 ♻️ 👏
This is totally a good move by the government. Malaysians love shopping malls. Despite the abundance, this retail sector is still mushrooming as long as there is property development. Not only will the government saves on building new recycling infrastructure, this approach will enable recycling facilities to be closer to homes. It is also a boon for malls as this can improve footfall.
There are already various working models in a few shopping malls in Klang Valley (e.g. One Utama, KL East Mall, IOI Mall Puchong).
(5) Closure of Illegal Dumpsites
To date, a total of 2,634 illegal dumpsites have been closed down and 28 cases have been prosecuted with fines of RM490,000.
What does this mean?
Lesser pollution to the environment especially our groundwater as there are no proper infrastructures to treat toxic leachate and methane gas emitted from the decomposition of waste in illegal dumpsites.
If you dispose legally in Malaysia’s landfill, waste generators will be charged on a per ton basis, in comparison to illegal dumpsite, where private operators will only be charging per entry basis.
Imagine a truck carrying 2 tonnes of waste.:
| Disposal charges by Jeram Sanitary Landfill | Disposal charges by Illegal Dumpsite |
| RM55/tonne x 2 tonnes = RM110 | RM50/entry x 1 truck = RM50 |
That’s 55% “savings” for cheating :/
In a Nutshell
Lastly, I hope that more people are aware of this and channel their support towards the same direction. In another words, waste generators and business owners (of large size in particular) need to tweak their operations with an end in mind by asking themselves these pertinent questions:
- Where is my waste being disposed at currently?
- Do I have any data and record on the waste disposed?
- How can I avoid or minimize the generation of waste in my business activity?
- How can I re-circulate waste back into the production line as a form of resource?
- How can I extract more waste out of my bin for recycling or upcycling purposes?
Our actions matter otherwise this beautiful picture will not materialise and we will then put the blame on the government.
All of us has a part to play to boost our nation’s recycling rate. What do you plan to do?
