Total Lack Of Concern For The Environment
For Many People, Pollution Is An Afterthought
There are many cases of air pollution in the country due to either open burning or the release of dangerous and dirty gases by industrial and manufacturing plants that are not known to the authorities.
In terms of open burning, it’s mostly done either by individuals at their own homes or at their workplaces. And in some cases, their bosses seemingly aren’t aware of the actions of their employees in conducting open burning.
When I say workplaces, this applies to both government and private buildings and departments.
Hypocrisy Shown By Government Officials
In terms of open burning activities at government premises, this is particularly disappointing, given that one would naturally expect government officials to be the ones setting good examples for the rest of the population to follow.
This is especially given that, apart from the basic fact that the government itself has a ministry dedicated to protecting and preserving the environment, the government is consistently raising awareness on why pollution in general and global warming are bad, as well as urging the public to take care of the environment.
Many People Are Just So Inconsiderate Towards The Environment
Such frequent acts of air pollution in Malaysia speak to the behavior of many citizens who, despite being educated by our education and health systems, aren’t at all considerate about the environment and perceive pollution as an afterthought, instead of something to be taken very seriously.
Stricter Enforcement Is The Only True Effective Way Forward
I strongly feel that at this point, the only truly effective way to put an end to such air pollution activities is through strict, frequent law enforcement as well as punishment by the authorities.
In line with this, the Department of Environment (DOE) needs to conduct consistent and frequent patrols (e.g. once every two weeks) through all its local branches throughout Malaysia, in order to monitor, investigate, and impose strict punishment toward those who are caught conducting air pollution activities.
With these actions, those responsible parties will not carry out such polluting activities out of fear of being caught and punished by the authorities.
I feel that such strict enforcement is only fair in such cases, and indeed overdue, given that years of public awareness campaigns and education, have failed to deter those who stubbornly and inconsiderately persist in breaking the law and conducting open burning.
Relying On The Public To Report Such Cases Is Ineffective
The government does encourage members of the public to help in this process by reporting to the authorities any such cases of pollution that they’ve witnessed.
But, the main problem with this is, that most members of the public who witness these acts of pollution, are either too busy or lazy to make the effort to go and search, as well as identify the basic details of the party responsible for the pollution.
Therefore, in this context, active patrolling by the authorities is what’s truly needed to curb this longstanding problem.
In conclusion, it’s high time the authorities put an end to air pollution activities in Malaysia by carrying out strict, frequent law enforcement as well as punishment towards those who are responsible.
Copyright Raveen Jeyakumar, 2023. All rights reserved.
Originally published at http://reformthesystem0.wordpress.com on August 28, 2023.
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