Eateries must stop dumping food waste into drain: Dept
Published on: Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: The recent cleanup undertaken by the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) to fish out mass rubbish from the monsoon drain in Foh Sang Commercial Centre, Luyang, was lauded by the community.In view of the rising cases of dengue, leptospirosis and other dreadful diseases.It is hoped similar effort would be carried out at other places in the city. ADVERTISEMENT More urgent is a need to instil awareness in eatery owners to refrain them from discarding leftovers especially chicken, fish bones,etc, into monsoon drain, said a Drainage and Irrigation Department official. "My lunch was spoiled by the stench emanating from the drain concerned. What I saw was disgusting. Countless rubbish comprising all kinds of junks such as plastic bags, bottles, drink canisters including some unrecognisable items were floating."It not only blocked the passageway but also made nearby areas smelly."Another reason why the structure should be litter free is to prevent the rubbish from choking the outlet of the water flowing into the sea. ADVERTISEMENT "Could this be the reason why certain parts of this suburb were subjected to flash flood over the past few years,? asked one resident.He stressed that it is important to maintain the cleanliness of such concrete structure in the city regardless whether flood mitigation or housing drains as both play equal role of discharging excess water into river or the sea from urban or residential areas.
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"We can't afford to have an ineffective drainage system due to a lack of regular maintenance because once the flood waters hit houses, business premises or farms, the destruction it caused can be enormous," he added. Eatery owners must also secure their food leftovers,including kitchen waste accordingly and not resort to dumping them into the drain. He commended the City Hall for clearing the rubbish that scattered at the public areas in that commercial centre recently."I hope the lackadaisical attitude of certain individuals there about the environment will change after this issue being highlighted in the Press," he said, adding that the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) effort to cleanup the monsoon drain recently was appreciated as well.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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A DID spokesman said its workforce had just completed desilting the monsoon drain there recently. "We hope to get the cooperation of everyone in looking after the cleanliness of such structure," he said, who urged all parties to stop throwing solid objects such as plastic or glass bottles into the drain.