Final Together, Protecting the Enviroment

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205

AUTHOR

Dr Minhaz Farid Ahmed is a University Lecturer/Research Fellow at
the Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). He obtained a PhD on Environment and
Development from UKM in 2018. Dr Minhaz also won a partial scholarship
from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) while
pursuing a Master’s Degree Program in Resource and Environmental
Management in Bangladesh. Dr Minhaz’s research interests are on
Water Education; Management, Communication and Collaboration
(WEMC²), which is in line with the aspirations of the Integrated Water
Resources Management Concept (IWRM) and the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs), including through a disaster risk reduction (DRR) approach for ecological systems’
management. Dr Minhaz is also interested in Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation
research, namely access to safe water supply and migration due to climate change, including
his previous involvement in several United Nations-sponsored research projects. Among the
projects are, AP-FAST (Acceleration of Science and Technology in the Asia Pacific Region);
MUCP (UNESCO Malaysia Cooperation Program) in Malaysia and the Asia Pacific Regional
Area; as well as the Malaysian National Water Sector Transformation Research Program
(WST2040) by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) and the Malaysian Academy of Sciences
(ASM). Dr Minhaz was involved in the “Climate-resilient Ecosystem and Livelihoods” (CREL)
project of USAID & NACOM at the Chittagong hill-tract and coastal area (2013). Dr Minhaz
is also recognized by the Global Alliance of Disaster Research Institutes (GADRI), Kyoto
University, Japan and was invited as a panelist and special speaker at the 5th GADRI Global
Summit: Engaging Sciences with Action (2021), also invited by UNESCO Jakarta in SETI
Science Policy Forum fully funded by UNESCO in Davao, Philippines (2018); was also
invited by the International Lake Environment Committee (ILEC) at the 17th International
Conference on the World’s Major Lakes fully funded by the Organizer, in Ibaraki, Japan
(2018). Dr. Minhaz is also a member of the LESTARI promotion and exhibition committee
(2022-25); and is Associate Editor of “International Journal of Climate Change Strategy and
Management.”

Dr. Norhazni binti Mat Sari is the Deputy Director General (Development)
of Department of Environment (DOE). She completed her Bachelor
of Science at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, MEng in Civil
Environmental at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and PhD at Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia in Environmental Management (Environmental
Forensics). She has 30 years’ experience in environmental legislation,
environmental forensic and hazardous waste management. She has
been credited with contributions to scheduled waste management policy
and has been appointed as DOE representative numerous times for
national and international conferences, workshops and programs related to environmental
topic. She is also actively involved in the scientific writing and guidelines publication related
to the environmental management for the Department. She is the first trainer and the module
writer for the Scheduled Waste Management Competency Program of DOE officers and
industrial premises. Dr. Norhazni also lead a committee for enhancement of EIA procedures
of DOE and revision of EQA 1974. She also served in the state environmental management
committee in managing the environmental issue while she was the State Director for Negeri
Sembilan DOE office.

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Mazlin Mokhtar, BSc. (Tasmania), PhD (Queensland), FASc., FMIC.,
DSDK (Kedah), PMP (Perak) is currently Deputy Head (Research),
United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network - Asia
(UN SDSN-Asia) at Sunway University, Malaysia. He was a Senior
Professor and Research Fellow at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
(UKM) for 37 years (May 1985 - May 2022). He was the Director and
Principal Fellow at the Institute for Environment and Development
(LESTARI) UKM 2005-2013 & 2019-2022; and was UKM Deputy Vice
Chancellor for Research & Innovation 2014-2017; and UKM’s Founding Director of Centre
for Public & International Relations (PUSPA) 2001-2004; & Lecturer at UKM Sabah Campus
1988-1996 (Faculty of Science and Natural Resources). Currently he is Chairman of the
Environment Committee of Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM), and Environmental
Quality Act’s Appeal Board Member. He was Chairman of Malaysia’s Environmental Quality
Council 2015-2018, and Chairman of the government appointed committee reviewing the
Lynas Rare Earth operations. He was the Chair of the AACB Water Sector Transformation
2040 Task Force under Economic Planning Unit of Prime Minister’s Department & Academy
of Sciences Malaysia (EPU-ASM); and was the Deputy Chairman of the Bauxite Mining and
Exportation SOP Committee appointed by the government of Malaysia. He’s the winner of
the Langkawi Award 2018; and was the longest serving member of the National Steering
Committee of UNDP GEF Small Grants Programme 2000-2018; and Nomination Committee
of the Merdeka Awards (Environment Category) 2015-2017 & 2020-2022. He is an Advisory
Committee of National River Care Fund; and Member of WWF Malaysia’s Board of Trustees
2014-2018.

Posses a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical and Process Engineering
from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Mohd Helmi bin Ahmad
started serving as an Environmental Control Officer since 2003, first
stationed at Department of Environment (DOE) Kedah before being
appointed as Head of the Kulim and Temerloh Branches. Since 2013
until now working as Principal Assistant Director at the DOE Putrajaya.
Experienced for 10 years in the organization of Communication,
Education and environmental awareness (CEPA) activities to target
groups such as the general public, industries, school and Higher Education Institutions
students in instilling responsibility and love for environmental sustainability and further
cultivating the practice of sustainability. Involved in the production of coffee table books for
the Sekolah Lestari – Anugerah Alam Sekitar (2013), Rakan Alam Sekitar (2013), Hari Alam
Sekitar Negara (2016) and is currently preparing the Anugerah Langkawi Kelestarian Alam
Sekitar’s book.

207

For many of us, water simply flows from a faucet,
and we think little about it beyond this point of
contact. We have lost a sense of respect for the
wild river, for the complex workings of a wetland,
for the intricate web of life that water supports.

- Sandra Postel

Kinabalu Mount, Sabah.

Chapter 8

Non-Point Source
Pollution:
Issues and
Challenges
in Malaysia

NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION:
ISSUES AND CHALLENGES IN MALAYSIA

Khai Ern Lee & Mazlin Mokhtar

INTRODUCTION

Malaysia was ranked 68th in the 2020 Environment Performance Index (EPI).
Environmental pollution has been and continue to be a national concern (Yale Center for
Environmental Law & Policy 2021). Environmental pollution is the undesirable alternation
of our surroundings as a result of human’s actions, either directly or indirectly, through
changes in the energy pattern, radioactive levels, chemical and physical constitution
and abundance of organisms. As a result of environmental pollution, the decline of
environmental quality is evident by observing the loss of vegetation, biological diversity,
excessive concentrations of hazardous chemicals in the ambient atmosphere, water
and food grains, as well as growing risks of environmental incidents and threats to life
support systems (Rai 2016).

The 2019 Kim Kim River incident has been an alert to the nation that serious attention
should be given to environmental health to ensure the well-being of the citizen (Yap et al.
2019). Environmental pollution is not a new issue, but it is still the world’s most serious
problem and has become one of the top causes of disease and mortality among humans.
Urbanisation and industrialisation, including massive land-use change through mining
and exploration, have contributed significantly to environmental pollution (Ukaogo et
al. 2020). Environmental pollution can be viewed differently, but it is widely agreed that
it can be divided into point source and non-point source pollution. Non-point source
pollution as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency (2020) being water or air
contamination (or pollution) that does not originate from a single discrete source. This
form of pollution is frequently the result of little amounts of pollutants accumulating over
a large area. Unlike point source pollution which results from a single source and is easy
to identify, non-point source pollution is difficult to identify and to determine the source.
Non-point source pollution may come from a variety of sources and there are no precise
solutions or modifications that can be made to solve the problem, making it difficult to
control. Figure 8.1 shows the illustration of point source pollution vs non-point source
pollution.

Non-point source pollution is difficult to prevent as it results from different activities.
As land runoff, precipitation, atmospheric deposition, drainage, seepage or hydrological
alteration occur, it carries away pollutants, both natural and man-made, eventually
depositing in lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waterways and groundwater (Zhang et
al. 2011). These pollutants include excess fertilisers, herbicides and insecticides from
agricultural lands and residential areas; oil, grease and toxic chemicals from urban
runoff and energy production; sediment from poorly managed construction sites,
crop and forest areas; acid drainage from abandoned mines and salt from irrigation

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Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

practices; bacteria and nutrients from cattle, pet waste and defective septic system;
as well as atmospheric deposition and hydromodification (Environmental Protection
Agency 2020). Hence, applying appropriate management strategies directed to run-off
from urban centers, construction activities, agricultural and forestry land use is essential
to control non-point source pollution. This chapter aims to identify the current state of
environmental pollution in Malaysia as well as to deliberate the issues and challenges
of non-point source pollution and the way forward for more sustainable environmental
management.

Figure 8.1: Illustration of Point-source Pollution vs Non-point Source Pollution.
(Source: https://www.scbwa.org/contaminents)

CURRENT STATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION IN MALAYSIA
In the context of environmental protection, Malaysia is governed by the National Policy on
the Environment (2002), focusing on continuous economic, social and cultural progress
and enhancement of the quality of life of Malaysians through environmentally sound and
sustainable management. The policy lay down eight interrelated and mutually supporting
principles in which strategies and measures are directed towards effective management
of the environment, pollution control and prevention of environmental degradation.
Under this policy, a holistic approach is required to manage the environment.
Legislations are in place that include provisions to regulate pollution from a variety of
sources and activities. Several acts, regulations, rules and orders have been enacted,
making provisions to deal with different sectoral environmental issues.
Section 25(1) of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 prohibits any person from emitting,
discharging or depositing any environmentally hazardous substances, pollutants or
wastes into any inland waters. Any person who fails to obey any order given under

211

Section 25(3) shall be liable to a fine not exceeding RM100,000 or imprisonment for
a period not exceeding 5 years or both. Further fine not exceeding RM1,000 a day for
every day that the offence is continued after a notice by the Director-General requiring
him to cease the act specified therein has been served upon him.

The Environmental Quality Report (2020) reveals that water pollution load is one of
the important criteria in prioritising strategies and planning the mode of action for
pollution prevention and control. The implementation of pollution load control is one
of the measures to improve river water quality in maintaining the river as a source of
potable water, recreational use, agriculture and aquaculture as well as to sustain the
ecological system. The Department of Environment (DOE) reported five types of water
pollution load sources, namely manufacturing industries, agricultural-based industries,
sewage treatment plants, pig farms and wet markets which are under the jurisdiction
and monitoring of different agencies including the DOE, SPAN, Department of Veterinary
Services and Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT), respectively.

In the EQR 2020 report shows the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) pollution load
of different sources in which an estimated load of 680.75 tonnes/day was generated
with sewage treatment plants being the main contributor, amounting to 401.10 tonnes/
day (58.92%). It is followed by pig farming activities that contributed 223.08 tonnes/
day (32.77%). In terms of Suspended Solids (SS) pollution load, Figure 8.3 shows that
the sewage treatment plants remained the biggest contributor with 473.17 tonnes/day
(34.46%), followed by pig farming activities contributing 463.32 tonnes/day (33.74%)
and agriculture-based industries contributing 400.16 tonnes/day (29.14%). As shown
in Figure 8.4, sewage treatment plants contributed the highest amount of Ammoniacal
Nitrogen (AN) pollution load which are 231.10 tonnes/day (82.31%), followed by pig
farming activities contributing 27.46 tonnes/day (9.78%) and agricultural-based
industries contributing 17.85 tonnes/day (6.36%). From the water pollution load
reported, it is noted that point source pollution is the main focus of the pollution load
monitoring in Malaysia whereby point sources, namely manufacturing industries, sewage
treatment plants, pig farming and wet markets, are monitored by the relevant agencies.
Meanwhile, agricultural-based industries are the only non-point source pollution source
being monitored, implying there is a need for attention on the non-point source pollution
in water, such as urban environment runoff, forestry and mining.

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Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

Figure 8.2: Estimation of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) load (Tonnes/Day) by Sources of
Water Pollution, 2020.
(Source: DOE 2020)

Figure 8.3: Estimation of Suspended Solid (SS) load (Tonnes/Day) by Sources of Water
Pollution, 2020.

(Source: DOE 2020)
213

Figure 8.4: Estimation of Ammoniacal Nitrogen (AN) load (Tonnes/Day) by Sources of Water
Pollution, 2020

(Source: DOE 2020)

Meanwhile, the Environmental Quality Report (2020) also reported that the increase in

industrial emissions and the number of motor vehicles could cause severe air pollution

if the emissions of pollutants are not effectively managed. A total of 13,776 industrial

sources (Department of Environment 2020) and 31,641,647 vehicles were recorded

in 2020 emitting air pollutants (Road Transport Department 2020). As shown in Figure

8.5, the overall cumulative air pollutant emission loads in 2020 for Carbon Monoxide

(CO) were 2,307,44 metric tonnes, followed by 935,747 metric tonnes of Nitrogen

tDoinonxeidseo(fNPOa2r)t,icu2l9a2te,65M1atmteer t(rPicMt)o.nOnevesraolfl, SaunlpinhcurreaDsieoxiindeair(SpOol2l)utaanndt 29,266 metric
emission loads

was observed from 2018 to 2020 which is corresponding with the intensified activities of

industries and road vehicles.

As shown in Figure 8.6, motor vehicles recorded the highest emission load of Carbon

Monoxide (CO) in which 2,210,695 metric tonnes (95.81%) were emitted in 2020, followed

by a relatively small fraction of 76,243 metric tonnes (3.30%) from the power generating

facilities. Figure 8.7 shows the emission load of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) in which power
generating facilities were the biggest contributor emitting 584,889 metric tonnes (62%),

followed by motor vehicles emitting 225,369 metric tonnes (24%), industries emitting

80,480 metric tonnes (9%) and other categories emitting 45,010 metric tonnes (5%).

In terms wohf iSchulprehcuorrDdeiodxi1d8e2(,S95O02),mpeotrwicertopnlannetss contributed the highest emission load
in 2020 (63%), followed by other categories -

76,673 metric tonnes (26%), industries – 18,376 metric tonnes (6%) and motor vehicles

- 14,652 metric tonnes (5%) as shown in Figure 8.8. For Particulate Matter (PM), the

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CHAPTER 8
Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

highest emission was power generating facilities recording 11,415 metric tonnes (39%)
as shown in Figure 8.9, followed by industries emitting 8,441 metric tonnes (29%), other
categories emitting 5,764 metric tonnes (20%) and motor vehicles emitting 3,645 metric
tonnes (12%). Other categories in this context represent air pollutant emission from
residential, commercial and non-energy use sources. It is noted from the air pollution
emission load that non-point source pollution, such as motor vehicles contributed CO,
NO2, SO2 and PM significantly to the emission load. However, other non-point source
pollution to the atmosphere, such as open burning, is often difficult to trace which also
requires the attention of the authorities.

Figure 8.5: Air Pollutant Emission Load from all Source, 2018 – 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)

Figure 8.6: CO Emission Load by Sources (Metric Tonnes), 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)
215

Figure 8.7: NO2 Emission Load by Sources (Metric Tonnes), 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)

Figure 8.8: SO2 Emission load by Sources (Metric Tonnes), 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)
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CHAPTER 8
Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

Figure 8.9: Particulate Matter (PM) Emission Load by Sources (Metric Tonnes), 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)

Figure 8.10: Air Pollutant Emission Load from Motor Vehicles, 2019 – 2020
(Source: DOE 2020)

ISSUES AND CHALLENGES OF NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION
In determining non-point source pollution, Kamarudzaman et al. (2011) were conducted
a case study in Timah Tasoh Lake, Perlis whereby 48 non-point sources of pollution
identified, activity of 29 agricultural activities, 10 workshops, 7 livestock, 1 construction
and 1 logging activity area. Through observation, domestic wastes which were disposed
of by adjacent residential and surface runoff from adjacent villages contributed organic

217

and inorganic pollutants as runoff into the river. Overuse of fertilisers and pesticides
gave high input of ammoniacal nitrogen into river as by runoff, as well as the waste
generated from livestock producing unwanted faecal contamination to the water body,
contributing non-point source pollution to the river. In this case study, the level of BOD,
COD, DO, E-coli and turbidity were detected as polluted as classified in the range of IIA
to V according to the classification based on the National Water Quality Standard for
Malaysia.
As there are no clearly identified discharge points and the locations may be varied
over time, non-point source pollution from agricultural activities, earthworks, mining
and sullage (domestic wastewater other than sewage, such as kitchen and bathroom
wastewater) are difficult to be identified by estimating the amount of pollutant loads
released (DOE 2020). In this context, land use is very essential in determining the origin
of non-point source pollution in which land use is used to categorise the homogeneous
characteristics of the land that has a direct effect on water quality. Eisakhani et al.
(2009) used Geographic Information System (GIS) to analyse spatially representing
data based on land use and link to the non-point source pollutant loading calculation by
taking into account precipitation and runoff as shown in Figure 8.11. Estimated Mean
Concentrations (EMC) are associated with runoff in the land use map and hence an
attribute database with all non-point sources of pollution can be generated as departed
in Figure 8.12.

Figure 8.11: Non-point Source Pollution Model
(Source: Eisakhani et al. (2009)).

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CHAPTER 8
Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

Figure 8.12: Cameron Highlands’ land use map and non-point source pollution
(Source: Eisakhani et al. (2009)).

In the urban environment, urban runoff affects water quality significantly where catchment
development alters the physical characteristics of the catchment and reduces infiltration
capacity. As the natural vegetation is altered, stormwater runoff increases and shortens
the runoff duration in which stormwater runoff that brings precipitation, soil erosion,
accumulation and wash-off of atmospheric dust, wash-off of street dirt, fertilisers and
pesticides and direct discharge of pollutants become the major contributors to non-
point source pollution of rivers. Nazahiyah et al. (2007) found that the urban residential
catchment of Skudai, Johor was severely polluted and recorded in Class V whereby the
Event Mean Concentrations of BOD5 (72 mg/L), COD (325 mg/L), SS(386 mg/L), NO3-N
(2.5 mg/L), NO2-N (0.58 mg/L), NH3-N (6.8 mg/L) and P (3.4 mg/L), respectively were
recorded. The first 20–30% of the runoff volume evacuated were recorded between
20–59% BOD, 15–69% COD, 15–78% SS, 14–49% NO3-N, 14–19% NO2-N, 23–53%
NH3-N and 23–43% P.
Non-point source pollution is not only associated with pollution from stormwater runoff,
it encompasses all forms of diffuse pollutants. Hence, characterising pollutants requires
extensive information of the area’s geography and an inventory of non-point sources,
therefore the diffuse sources of pollution must be identified and located. In Cameron
Highlands which is characterised by undisturbed nature with virgin mountain forest that is
ecologically rich, agriculture and urbanisation on the other hand cause pollution making
it vulnerable. Eisakhani et al. (2011) found that the highest annual runoff is created
by forest, 3.56×108 m3/yr followed by urban development, 1.46×108 m3/yr. Considering

219

the runoff characteristics, overland runoff can wash away sediment, phosphorus and
nitrogen into the nearest water body. Urban development contributed the highest BOD
load (1.31 × 106 kgBOD/yr), while agricultural activities and forests contributed the
highest annual loads for phosphorus (6.91 × 104 kgP/yr) and nitrogen (2.50 × 105 kgN/
yr), respectively. Results indicated concern on non-point source pollution in Cameron
Highlands where urban, forestry and agriculture are the main non-point source pollution
in the watershed.
Four basins in Kelantan, namely Galas, Nenggiri, Lebir and Pergau were studied by
Abdulkareem et al. (2018), in which the study found that pollutant loads of TSS, TP,
TN and AN were identified on different land uses, such as forest, paddy, agriculture,
grassland, urbanisation, cleared land, mangrove swamp, secondary forest, rivers, ponds
and lakes and mining. Agricultural activities appeared to record the highest amount of
pollutant loads where TSS, TN and AN were found to be the non-point source pollutants.
High TSS found in mining activities are mainly due to sediment-laden pollution in
inland water resulting from mining in the rivers whereby sand mining activities are the
significant source of soil particles in the water body as pointed out by Al-Mamun, &
Zainuddin (2013) and Afroz (2018). High TP was found in a high soil erosion area that
releases phosphorus bonded to the soil into the water body because phosphorus is
not highly mobile in the soil, while TN and AN were attributed to agricultural activities
making the pollutant readily available in the water body. Ismail et al. (2012) highlighted
that uncontrolled use of pesticides in agricultural sectors accounts for the pollutant loads
not only in crops but also in the soil surface water and other environmental matrices,
contributing to non-point source pollution of surface water.
While, significant progress has been made in addressing point-source pollution, there
has been little development in the area of non-point source pollution. This is mainly due
to the seasonality, inherent variability and diversity of the origin of non-point source
pollution. Hence, non-point source pollution is not widely studied in Malaysia just yet
and it receives less attention compared to point-source pollution. It is largely due to
legislations available in the form of the Environmental Quality Act 1974 which mainly
deals with point source pollution in particular domestic and industrial sources. Besides,
Malaysia suffers from sectoral governance in terms of policy, legislative and institutional
frameworks, both at federal and state levels, which should monitor both point-source
and non-point sources pollution. The legislations contained within the laws (as shown
in Table 8.1), are enforced by various related government agencies and many are
outdated, redundant and ambiguous (Al-Mamun & Zainuddin 2013). These diversified
legislations and agencies focusing on limited aspects are difficult to govern effectively.
Hence, there is a need to establish a holistic approach in governance supported by land
use surveillance and environmental analytics technology and social enablers that can
deal not only with point-source but also non-point source pollution effectively.
WAY FORWARD
As mentioned earlier, the current environmental governance, i.e. policy, legislative and
institutional frameworks in Malaysia remain sectoral, focusing on different subject matters
related to environmental protection. Although the federal government has implemented
a series of pollution control measures under the provision of the Environmental Quality

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Non-Point Source Pollution: Issues & Challenges in Malaysia

Act 1974, other technical agencies and local authorities have been inconsistent in the
governance of non-point source pollution. Different regulations, roles, strategies and
interactions adopted by federal, state and local authorities, particularly in dealing with
non-point source pollution, require a collaborative governance model which consists
of multi-stakeholders participation (Pan et al. 2014). As proposed by Xu et al. (2020),
a relook into the policy design should take place since non-point source pollution is
a cross-cutting environmental issue among a few agencies and sound coordination
among different agencies is required. Firstly, according to the source of power given
to the agencies, it is necessary to enhance their motivation towards non-point source
pollution control. The federal government should first provide subsidies through a
green ecology-oriented subsidy scheme to lead the operators to take the first step of
pollution control. Then, it is instrumental for local authorities to establish a dynamic
guiding mechanism to enhance the awareness of operators in using structural and non-
structural best management practices by comprehensive supervision and assessment
on the effectiveness of non-point source pollution control (Abdulkareem et al. 2018). As
for the operators, it is essential for them to improve their pollution control by technical
innovation whereby local authorities can actively encourage newly licensed operators to
cooperate with technology companies and universities to promote applications of green
technologies to reduce costs while improving the quality and footprint of their operations.
Based on the synergistic effects among these stakeholder groups, the common interest
among the groups can be enhanced through policy linkage where policies should not
only be coordinated and linked among groups but also should be reflected by the
common interest of all stakeholders to collaboratively govern non-point source pollution.
Recognising that non-point source pollution is difficult to identify and determine the
origin, land use and environmental monitoring data are essential for environmental
analytics where it analyses large data sets at the intersection of observed environmental
conditions, ecology and infrastructure to provide a guided-decision to be making tool for
governance. In this context, the Geographic Information System (GIS) is leveraged to
deal with spatial and temporal data, providing the collected environmental monitoring
data with patterns and relationships using information models. The GIS aids a high
level of decision making for effective governance of non-point source pollution where
it provides: descriptive analytics focusing on the identification of the problems and
opportunities within the existing environmental processes and functions; predictive
analytics using mathematical algorithms and programming to determine explanatory
and predictive patterns from the available datasets; and prescriptive analytics involving
the optimisation and simulation techniques of multi criteria-parameters to make guided
decisions (Sharma et al. 2018). And, by leveraging emerging technologies, such as IoT,
drones, mobile computing, cloud computing, etc, it assists different layers or platforms
for efficient data collection, storage, analysis and information sharing. Environmental
analytics provide a decision support framework and allow the decision-maker to identify
appropriate resource and control measures in tackling non-point source pollution
(Chowdary et al. 2005; Liu et al. 2016).
In tackling non-point source pollution, one should not just focus on top-down
management governance where only the government agencies are championing
environmental monitoring, but communities should play a bigger role through bottom-up
governance. Citizen science provides the opportunity for local communities to participate

221

in environmental monitoring where this engagement has the potential of creating public
support for efforts to address non-point source pollution (Kim et al. 2011; Newman et al.
2020). Citizen science empowers communities to help the authorities and researchers
in performing environmental monitoring in locations that are only familiar and accessible
by the communities. This extends capacity for scientific observation and fundamentally
changes communities’ awareness and mentality, subsequently influencing how non-
point source pollution is managed. In this context, social participation is not only a means
of enhancing the capacity in environmental monitoring, but it creates a mechanism for
the communities to take part in governing and controlling non-point source pollution
(Jones et al. 2021).
CONCLUSION
Environmental pollution has been a major concern for Malaysia, especially after the
2019 Kim Kim River incident. In dealing with environmental protection, Malaysia
has been focusing on point source pollution, given the current policy, legislative and
institutional frameworks that have been sectorally focused. Hence, non-point source
pollution is not widely studied in Malaysia.It receives less attention compared to point-
source pollution mainly due to overlapping and ambiguous jurisdiction among some
agencies. To overcome this issue, there is a need to establish a holistic approach in
governance supported by land use surveillance and environmental analytics technology.
Social enablers, such as industries and communities participation, rendering their time,
resources and expertise through citizen science approach, can assist the authorities
in addressing point-source and non-point source pollution effectively. Lastly, multi-
stakeholders collaborative governance is the way forward to bring together authorities
of different levels, industries from different sectors and communities in addressing non-
point source pollution to ensure sustainable environmental management.
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AUTHOR

Associate Professor Ts. Dr. Lee Khai Ern is the Head of the
Research Centre for Sustainability Science and Governance
(SGK), Institute of Environment and Development (LESTARI),
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). He has expertise in Green
Technology and Sustainability Management. Before Dr. Lee joined
UKM as an academic, he worked in multi-national companies based
in the United States where he was the Lead Auditor certified by the
International Register of Certified Auditors (IRCA), coordinating
quality, environmental, health and safety matters for the corporate.

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Dr. Lee also served as Deputy Director (Infrastructure & Instrumentation) at the Centre
for Research Management and Instrumentation (CRIM) and was the pioneer of the
i-CRIM Laboratory. Now, Dr. Lee is a Senior Fellow at LESTARI, he is also a Fellow
at the Jeffrey Sachs Center on Sustainable Development (JSC), Sunway University.
With his expertise in the field of Green Technology, he has been recognised by the
Malaysian Board of Technologists (MBOT) as a Professional Technologist. Dr. Lee is
also an Accredited Panel Mediator at the Malaysian Mediation Centre, Bar Council of
Malaysia where he currently leads Kumpulan Mediasi Lestari at UKM. Dr. Lee is also
a Member of the Young Scientist Network-Academy of Sciences Malaysia (YSN-ASM).
Dr. Lee has been appointed by the United Nations Centre for Regional Development
(UNCRD) as an expert in the field of wastewater treatment. He is also one of the Focal
Persons for the Sustainable Development Solutions Network-Malaysia Chapter. Dr. Lee
is an alumnus of Leadership for Sustainability, United Nations University (UNU). With his
expertise in the field of Sustainability Management, he has been involved in national and
industrial projects, such as Water Sector Transformation 2040, Penang Green Agenda
2030, Perak Sustainable Greeplan 2030, Environmental Policy 2022 and Responsible
Care. Dr. Lee is also the winner of the Anugerah Bitara Sarjana Harapan 2018 and the
Anugerah Bitara Makalah (Sains Sosial) 2020 as well as receiving the Top Cited Paper
Award from Elsevier. Dr. Lee is currently a Certified ESG Practitioner.

Mazlin Mokhtar, BSc. (Tasmania), PhD (Queensland), FASc., FMIC.,
DSDK (Kedah), PMP (Perak) is currently Deputy Head (Research),
United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network - Asia
(UN SDSN-Asia) at Sunway University, Malaysia. He was a Senior
Professor and Research Fellow at the Universiti Kebangsaan
Malaysia (UKM) for 37 years (May 1985 - May 2022). He was the
Director and Principal Fellow at the Institute for Environment and
Development (LESTARI) UKM 2005-2013 & 2019-2022; and was
UKM Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation 2014-2017; and UKM’s Founding
Director of Centre for Public & International Relations (PUSPA) 2001-2004; & Lecturer at
UKM Sabah Campus 1988-1996 (Faculty of Science and Natural Resources). Currently
he is Chairman of the Environment Committee of Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM),
and Environmental Quality Act’s Appeal Board Member. He was Chairman of Malaysia’s
Environmental Quality Council 2015-2018, and Chairman of the government appointed
committee reviewing the Lynas Rare Earth operations. He was the Chair of the AACB
Water Sector Transformation 2040 Task Force under Economic Planning Unit of Prime
Minister’s Department & Academy of Sciences Malaysia (EPU-ASM); and was the
Deputy Chairman of the Bauxite Mining and Exportation SOP Committee appointed
by the government of Malaysia. He’s the winner of the Langkawi Award 2018; and was
the longest serving member of the National Steering Committee of UNDP GEF Small
Grants Programme 2000-2018; and Nomination Committee of the Merdeka Awards
(Environment Category) 2015-2017 & 2020-2022. He is an Advisory Committee of
National River Care Fund; and Member of WWF Malaysia’s Board of Trustees 2014-
2018.

225

If there is magic on the planet, it is
contained in Water.

- Loren Eiseley

Taiping Lake, Perak.

Chapter 9

Marine Water
Quality Challenges

into the
21st Century

MARINE WATER QUALITY CHALLENGES
INTO THE 21ST CENTURY

Gopinath Nagaraj, Harinder Rai Singh, S.S. Puvanes & Norhayati Sabudin

OVERVIEW OF THE MALAYSIAN MARINE ESTATE

Malaysia’s territorial waters cover 549 500km2 (MOSTE, 1997) and have more than
100 islands with a total coastline length of 4675 km (Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and
Sarawak). Coastal mangroves occupy 5669 km2 (Wong, 2004), while coral reefs
occupy an estimated ocean area amounting to approximately 4006 km2 (Burke et al.,
2002). Land-based and sea-based pollution sources pose threats to important marine
resources such as coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses and fisheries. Malaysia’s marine
habitats are rich in natural resources and any unmanaged development in coastal areas
and islands creates significant impacts on these sensitive environments as well as their
associated organisms.

Malaysia marine waters are critical to the socio-economic well-being of the nation.
A sizable proportion of the population lives in coastal areas and many communities
depend on local resources for their livelihoods. From shipping to fishing to recreation,
these waters support a wide spectrum of economic, social and cultural activity. As such,
the Malaysian marine environment is susceptible to a variety of pollution sources, both
land-based as well as sea-based. This can, and has, led to deterioration of water quality
and, accompanying that, habitat degradation and loss of biodiversity resources and an
overall reduction in productivity. This, in turn, has the potential to impact its value to the
nation. Proper and sustainable management of the marine environment is thus essential
to ensure that the rich and diverse marine ecosystems of the nation is preserved and will
continue to provide benefits for future generations.

Malaysian marine waters can be divided into four ecoregions that have distinctive
characters from a ecological and oceanographic perspective. These are the waters off
the West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak
and Sabah. The waters off the West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia are hemmed in by
Sumatra while inter-tidal regions are characterised by large tracts of mangroves and
mudflats.

The East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, in contrast, are open to the waters of the
relatively shallow Sunda Shelf, and feature several small islands, with fringing coral
reefs. Sarawak waters are similarly open though island formation is limited. There are,
however, large tracts of submerged reefs in the Luconia shoals and off Miri. West of the
Sulu – Sulawesti Sea, Sabah’s marine waters broadly mirror that of Sarawak’s, while on
the East coast is resplete with a large number of islands and coral reefs.

The differing character of these ecoregions, their habitats and the manner they relate
to the health of their marine environment represents a continuum emerging out of a

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confluence of many forces that determine their presence. It is a situation that demands
a publication of its own. However, this chapter is limited to simply describing the physico-
chemical status of marine water quality of ecoregions and the way forward in making
them more meaningful as markers for ecosystem health.

STATUS OF PHYSICO CHEMICAL QUALITY OF MALAYSIA’S MARINE
ESTATE

Malaysia’s coastal and marine sources of pollution are related to manufacturing,
maritime and shipping, agriculture, urbanization (organic waste, sewage and garbage),
and oil and gas activities. The manufacturing sector is the major contributor to metal
pollution (electroplating, etching, metal components) (Rahman and Surif, 1993) where
the semiconductor and electronics industry alone in 1992 released 69,000m3 of sludge
per annum containing heavy metals (Hamid and Sidhu, 1993). Copper (Cu) from pig
farms are known to contaminate coastal sediments and fauna (mollusks) (Ismail and
Rosniza, 1997). Besides tin (Sn), port and shipping activities are responsible for Lead
(Pb), Copper (Cu) and As (Arsenic) in the Straits of Malacca (Abdullah et al., 1999).

Marine Sediment Quality

Few studies have been conducted on metals in marine waters but published data
indicates contamination by Pb, Cu and Zn (Shazili et al., 2006; Sany et al., 2013)
(Table 9.1). Metal concentration in coastal and marine biota (Sillago sihama, Pampus
argentus, P. chinensis, Lutjanus johni, Sphyraena sp., Perna viridis, Saccostrea sp.;
Penaeus monodon) is not a concern as the levels of the various metals are within the
safe limits set by the Malaysian Foods Act of 1983 (Shazili et al., 2006), however, there
is potential for bioaccumulation within marine commercial taxa as shown for Perna
viridis, Crossostrea belcheri and C. irredalei (Shazili et al., 1995; Lim et al., 1998; Yap
et al., 2002) which may result in biomagnification (Molles, 2008) at higher trophic levels.

Table 9.1: Heavy Metal Concentration in Water in the Coastal and Marine Waters of Malaysia (µg/L)

LOCATION

HEAVY KEMAMAN COAST1 KLANG KLANG PORT
METALS ESTUARY1 STRAIT2 DICKSON1

DISSOLVED PARTICULATE DISSOLVED DISSOLVED ASV LABILE

Pb 0.01-0.29 0.07-0.11 1.6 1.64-7.17 0.97-5.2

Cd 0.01-0.06 <0.01-0.04 - 0.33-1.07 0.03-0.42

Cu 0.16-0.76 0.44-0.51 4.3 1.67-5.29 0.8-1.5

Zn 7.3-29 0.69-1.29 3.9 26-88.3 1.3-5.9

Cr 0.21-1.23 0.72-1.6 - 2.41-7.33  -

Ni 0.47-1.11 0.16-0.54 - 1.17-5.42  -

Fe 13.6-25.2 8.6-35 - -  -

Al 59-84 58-144 -  - - 

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LOCATION

HEAVY KEMAMAN COAST1 KLANG KLANG PORT
METALS ESTUARY1 STRAIT2 DICKSON1

As DISSOLVED PARTICULATE DISSOLVED DISSOLVED ASV LABILE
Hg
--- 13.3-47.7 -

--- 0.01-0.06 -

Note: Pb: Lead; Cd: Cadmium; Cu: Copper; Zn: Zinc; Cr: Chromium; Ni: Nickle; Fe: Iron; Al:
Aluminium; As: Arsenic; Hg: Mercury

(Source: 1: Shazili et al., 2006; 2: Sany et al., 2013)

Heavy metals in marine sediments (Table 9.2) show that Lead (Pb) in Peninsular
Malaysia is higher than natural global values in places like Kemaman (Ahmad, 1996),
Tanjung Karang, Penang (Wood et al., 1993) while Zinc (Zn) and Pb were higher by
magnitudes of 2 to 3 times respectively in the Johor Straits and this was attributed to
traffic (petrol and tyre wear) between Malaysia and Singapore (Wood et al., 1997).

Offshore data on metals for the Straits of Malacca and the South China Sea showed
that most metals are at global baseline levels (global shale values), except for Zn which
recorded values higher than baseline levels (Wood et al., 1997; Shazili et al., 1999a,
1999b; Kamaruzaman et al., 2001).

Table 9.2: Heavy Metal Concentration in Sediments in the Coastal and Marine Waters of Malaysia.
(µg/g dry wt; with Fe and Al in %) (adapted from Shazili et al., 2006) (Data for the South
China sea areas have been combined)(Pb-Lead; Cd-Cadmium; Cu-Copper; Zn-Zinc; As-
Arsenic; Cr-Chromium; Ni-Nickle; Fe-Iron; Al-Aluminium)

LOCATION Pb Cd Cu HEAVY METALS Ni Fe SEDIMENT
Zn As Cr Al TYPE

Terengganu 4.09- 1.65- 5.23- - 11.1- - 0.66- 0.06- Sand
36.6 41.1 106 7.59 1.08
Coast 19.8

Kemaman 4.90- 0.11- 1.87- 13.0- - 17.6- 3.6- 1.02- 1.17- Clay-Sand
Coast 70.0 0.61 22.5 135.0 66 19.4 6.79 12

Kemaman - 0.09- - - - - - - - Clay
Mangroves 1.15

South China 2.0- - 20.0- - - 38.0- 24.0- 1.33- 2.36- Clay-Sand
Sea, off 41.0 50.0 59.0 47.0 2.34 3.81
Sabah

South China 1.01- 0.06- 1.78- 11.6- - 10.1- 5.63- 0.1- 0.06- Clay-Sand
Sea 56.5 0.94 56.8 137.0 125.0 58.0 3.54 7.22

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LOCATION Pb Cd Cu HEAVY METALS Ni Fe SEDIMENT
Zn As Cr Al TYPE

Juru, 17.3- 0.04- 9.3-43 36.7- 0.9- 7.0- 21.0- 6.6- 1.8- Clay
Malacca 35.5 0.24 83.7 12.3 77.7 34.0 3.60 9.4
Straits

Johor 19.0- 0.08- 11.0- 54.0- 6.5- 13.0- 21.0- 1.74- 3.08- Clay
Straits 160.0 0.32 63.0 334.0 39.2 61.0 32.0 3.7 12.34

Marine Water Quality in Coastal Areas

Marine water quality parameters from the DOE monitoring stations indicate that the
following of the 188 coastal stations were monitored for water quality in 2020, 55 stations
(29.26%) were ranked excellent, 41 (21.81%) ranked good, 88 stations (46.81%) ranked
moderate while four (4) stations (2.13%) were ranked poor (Figure 9.1).

Figure 9.1: The Trend of Marine Water Quality Status for Coastal Area, 2016-2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

Marine Water Quality off Islands

A total of 95 islands water quality monitoring stations were established surrounding 80
islands and were monitored in the year 2020. Out of the 95 island monitoring stations, 46
(48.42%) ranked excellent, nine (9) stations (9.47%) ranked good, while the remaining
39 stations (41.05%) ranked moderate and one (1) station (1.05%) was ranked poor in
2020 (Figure 9.2). The number of stations ranked excellent increased from 34 in 2019
to 46 stations in 2020. The number of stations considered good, though, decreased from
33 in 2019 to nine (9) stations in 2020.

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Figure 9.2: The Trend of Marine Water Quality Status for Island, 2016-2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

Estuarine Water Quality
Figure 9.3 shows the trend of marine water quality status for estuaries based on
MMWQI. The number of stations ranked excellent remain the same number, three (3)
as in 2019 and 2020, whereas the number of stations ranked good decreased from 13
stations in 2019 to six (6) stations in 2020.

Figure 9.3: The Trend of Marine Water Quality Status for Estuaries, 2016-2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

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MAJOR STRESSORS OF THE MALAYSIAN MARINE ENVIRONMENT

Marine Pollution

The pollution of marine waters remains the most compelling stressor of the Malaysia’s
marine estate. There is a lack of a comprehensive data on the sources of of marine
pollution in the country. Much of that pollution comes from riverine runoff. Even here,
there are major differences. The runoff from rivers that drain industrial catchments
such as the Sg. Juru cannot be the same as that of Sg. Tebrau, that largely drains an
urbanised catchment at the Sg. Linggi, that drains a mixed urban/agriculture flow.

While the totality of marine pollution in its entirety is not captured by the Department
of Environment’s monitoring. Parameters such as solid waste and microplastics, for
instance, are not captured and thus fall through the cracks. However, the current data
does investigate major sources of environmental stressors involved and the parameters
by which they are assessed. There are five (5) types of water pollution load sources
that have been investigated which are the manufacturing industries, agricultural-based
industries, sewage treatment plants, pig farming and wet markets. While some of these
are obvious and well known, others such as pig farms and wet markets, are less so.
Pig farms are in Malaysia are mainly small scale and lack the economies of scale to
install appropriate treatment systems. Their waste is discharged directly into nearby
rivers which eventually drain into the sea (JPBD, 2018). While zero discharge farms are
advocated (Liang et al, 2016) have been advocated, such systems are yet to become
widespread.

Wet markets in coastal towns are also considered major sources of solid and liquid
wastewater. Older wet markets encompass not only sale of produce but also slaughter
of chickens and poultry, as well as the disposal of plastics, particularly plastic foam
and bags and wash water. In older towns, such markets were located next to rivers to
facilitate discharge of wastewater and often represented major sources of pollution to
the river system involved. In coastal towns such as Johor Bharu, the proximity to marine
waters means that coastal waters are affected as well. The widespread use of plastics,
such as bags and boxes to hold produce has exacerbated the problem (Department of
Environment, 2013; Drainage and Irrigation, 2019).

The government is mindful of this and has empowered a number of relevant agencies
to monitor water quality where it relates to the marine environment. The source of data
for manufacturing industries and agricultural-based industries were provided by the
Department of Environment (DOE) State offices while data for sewage treatment plants
are obtained from Indah Water Konsortium Sdn. Bhd. and local authorities. Water quality
data regarding pig farming is generated by the Department of Veterinary Services and
data on wet markets is acquired from the Ministry of Housing and Local Government.
However, while data on solid water collected and disposed off on land is collected by the
Department of Solid Waste and Public Cleanliness, major shortfall is on data on solid
waste in rivers, which is not collected by any agency.

233

Calculations on pollution loads in riverine waters are mainly focused on four main
parameters i.e. off Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), Suspended Solids (SS) and
Ammoniacal Nitrogen (AN). As these eventually end up in the marine environment,
they are are discussed in greater detail below. There are other parameters that impinge
on the quality of the marine environment which are not measured or assessed. This
means that our understanding and appreciation of their impact is unknown yet can be
potentially serious.

Biochemical Oxygen Demand

In 2020, an estimated BOD pollution load of 680.75 tonnes/day was generated.
Sewage treatment plants remain the largest BOD load contributor with a total load
of 401.10 tonnes/day (58.92%), followed by pig farming activities which contributed
223.08 tonnes/ day (32.77%), agriculture-based industries 27.45 tonnes/ day
(4.03%), manufacturing industries 23.94 tonnes/ day (3.52%) and wet markets 5.18
tonnes/ day (0.76%) (Figure 9.4).

Figure 9.4: Estimation of BOD Load (tonnes/day) by Sources of Water Pollution, 2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

The estimated BOD loading generated in Johor was recorded to be the highest with
a value of 155.00 tonnes/day, followed by Perak 110.72 tonnes/day, Selangor 85.52
tonnes/day, Sarawak 80.82 tonnes/day, Sabah 65.65 tonnes/day and Pulau Pinang
64.36 tonnes/day. BOD load for the rest of the states including Federal Territory of
Labuan and Putrajaya generated less than 22.54 tonnes/day. It is pertinent to note
that much of sewage effluent, treated or otherwise, end up in storm drains which
eventually end up in the marine environment. This would include older residential,
commercial, and industrial establishments who would not be forthcoming in
investing in the necessary infrastructure to channel their sullage discharge to an
integrated sewerage system.

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Suspended Solids

The overall estimation in the year 2020 for suspended solid load was 1373.08
tonnes/day. Total pollution load from sewage treatment plant shows the highest
load 473.17 tonnes/ day (34.46%) followed by pig farming activities with 463.32
tonnes/day (33.74%). Agriculture-based industries contributed 400.16 tonnes/day
(29.14%), followed by manufacturing industries.

Most of estimated suspended solid load was generated in Johor with a value of
558.99 tonnes/day, followed by Perak 192.61 tonnes/day, Selangor 142.57 tonnes/
day, Pulau Pinang 122.59, and Sabah 105.49. The suspended solid load for the rest
of the states including Federal Territory of Labuan and Putrajaya generated less
than 99.55 tonnes/day.

Figure 9.5: Estimation of SS Load (tonnes/day) by Sources of Water Pollution, 2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

Ammoniacal Nitrogen

In 2020, the AN load was estimated to be 280.77 tonnes/day in which sewage
treatment plant remained the largest contributor with a total load of 231.10 tonnes/
day (82.31%), followed by pig farming activities with 27.46 tonnes/day (9.78%),
agriculture-based industries 17.85 tonnes/day (6.36%), manufacturing industries
4.07 tonnes/day (1.45%) and wet markets 0.29 tonnes/day (0.10%) (Figure 9.6).
The estimated AN loads generated in Johor was recorded to be the highest with a
value of 60.06 tonnes/day, followed by Sabah at 39.41 tonnes/day, Selangor 39.09
tonnes/day, Perak 32.46 tonnes/day and Sarawak 32.23 tonnes/day.

235

Figure 9.6: Estimation of AN Load (tonnes/day) by Sources of Water Pollution, 2020
(Source: DOE, 2021)

Solid Waste and Plastics

Solid waste and floatables in rivers suffer from a lacuna in the law that prevents it
from being addressed by any one institution. The slant in the Solid Waste and Public
Cleansing Management Act, 2007 leaves the matter of riverine solid waste in the hands
of local government. On the other hand, the latest version of the Local Government Act,
1976 (Act 171) (DOA, 2022) makes no stipulation that solid waste in rivers is within their
jurisdiction.

States (and Local Authorities) see river management within the ambit of the Drainage
and Irrigation Department, whose foundation is the Street, Drainage and Building Act
(1974), does not have the power to control those who discharge solid waste in rivers.
It is pertinent to note that the Solid Waste Department, which oversees solid waste
management in most parts of Peninsular Malaysia, does not cover solid waste in aquatic
environment.

The issue is not inconsequential. A study by the Town and Country Planning Department
in relation to the Local Plan for Kuala Langat pointed out that the rubbish boom in the
district harvested over 18,000 tonnes of litter from the river annually (JPBD, 2103). This
is not exhaustive since, as the report says, a significant volume of debris escapes the
boom, since it is focused only on floatable material.

Common items of marine litter in the sea include cigarette butts, crisp/sweet packets,
cotton bud sticks, bags and bottles. The problem of marine little is not unique to
Malaysia. Man-made items of debris have been found in marine habitats throughout

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the world, from the poles to the equator, from shorelines and estuaries to remote areas
of the high seas, and from the sea surface to the ocean floor. Both macroplastics
(for example, large plastic items such as plastic bags, water bottles and fishing
gear) and microplastics (small plastic particles generally five millimetres or less
in size) persist in the marine environment and result in harmful effects on marine
life and biodiversity, as well as negative impacts on human health. In addition,
marine plastic litter negatively impacts on activities such as tourism, fisheries
and shipping. This plastic material has the potential to be brought back into the
economy by means of reuse or recycling. Studies demonstrate that despite the existing
regulatory framework to prevent marine plastic litter from ships, discharges into the sea
continue to occur (IMO, 2022).

A study in Sarawak (Mobilik et al, 2014) during the North East Monsoon indicated of
the sources of beach debris, 23.99% were items were directly associated with marine
sources. Items associated with terrestrial and common sources were 11.67% and
64.34% respectively. Out of the 21 objects identified as marine source debris, 86.91%
comprised of ropes, oil bottles, packaging and cigarette lighters which were present in
all study sites. Five highest number of items found in all the study sites for the terrestrial
source debris were wrappers, shopping bags, cardboard cartons, aluminium cans and
cloths which contributed a total of 97.98%. Clear and coloured plastic bottles represented
46.15% of the total objects in the common source debris. A total of 730 item/km of debris
at 42 kg/km was collected from this study.

Manufactured in abundance since the mid-20th century, most of the plastics that have
been produced are still present in the environment. Malaysia is ranked 8th globally
as a top plastic polluter in 2021 and recorded highest plastic consumption in Asia at
a rate of 62kg/capita/year (Santodomingo et al., 2021). It is significant to note that the
study by Mobilik et al (2014), almost half the marine litter recorded were of plastics.
Plastic pollution is harmful to marine organisms as it breaks down into microplastics and
releases chemicals into the water. Microplastics are small, fragmented pieces (< 5mm)
which are problematic because they are difficult to recover which are easily consumed
by marine organisms resulting in bioaccumulation and biomagnification through the
food chain (Tan et al., 2022; Ibrahim et al, 2022). Microplastics have been recorded
from habitats such as coastal surface waters (Khalik et al., 2018; Amin et al., 2020;
Periathamby et al., 2020; Tee et al, 2020), mangrove sediments (Fauziah et al., 2020)
and beach sediments (Fauziah et al., 2015).

The kind of microplastics that were recorded by these studies included fibres, fragments,
lines, pellets, film, foam and irregular forms. Microplastics have been recorded from
coastal, marine and freshwater organisms in Malaysia such as in fish (Ibrahim et al.,
2017; Karami et al., 2017a; Karami et al., 2017b; Karami et al., 2016; Karbalaei et al.,
2019; Romano et al., 2018; Sarijan et al., 2019), hard clams (Pariatamby et al., 2020),
zooplankton (Amin et al., 2020) and copepods (Amelia et al., 2020).

237

Shipping/Ballast Water

As Malaysia moves towards developing its coastal areas there will be much pressure
put on its coastal waters. One outcome of the increased activities in coastal areas is the
increase harmful microalgal blooms (HABs). HAB events are natural occurrences due to
endemic microalgal species adapted to coastal environments, but their sudden blooms
are the result of increased human activities (enrichment of coastal waters (eutrophication)
from land-based discharges such as fertiliser laden runoffs from plantations, nutrients
from livestock farms, sewage effluent, aquaculture activities, reversed monsoon winds
and upwelling events) (Wang et al., 2008; Hallegraeff et al. 2021), and transportation
of organisms. Algae blooms tend to occur in sheltered places with restricted water
movements, such as lagoons, ports and embayments. HABs can result in fish kills,
shellfish contamination and water discolouration but blooms of non-toxic microalgae
can lead to fish die-offs when their decomposition depletes dissolved oxygen by creating
hypoxic or anoxic conditions.

Four poisoning types due to HABs are known from the Aian waters - amnesic shellfish
poisoning (ASP), ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP), diarrheal shellfish poisoning (DSP)
and paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) (Furuya et al., 2018).

In Malaysian waters, HABs have been reported from the coastal waters of Sabah,
Sarawak, Johor, Kelantan, Perak, and Penang (Lim et al., 2012; Lim et al., 2013;
Lim et al., 2014; Lau et al., 2017; Jipanin et al., 2019; Gu et al., 2022; Razali et al.,
2022). Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) due to harmful algal blooms was reported
in November 2013 and August 2014 from the Kuantan Port where ten people were
hospitalized after consuming shellfish (Normawaty et al., 2018).

Some noted events of the HABs in Malaysian waters are given in Table 9.3. Cysts of
the HAB causing dinoflagellate, Gymnodinium catenatum have been reported from the
Selangor coastal waters, north of Klang Islands (Bagan Nahkoda Omar, Sungai Besar,
Sekinchan, and Kuala Selangor) but in low densities (Su-Myat et al., 2012).

Table 9.3: Harmful Algal Bloom Incidences in Malaysia (adapted from Lim et al., 2012)

TIMELINE HARMFUL LOCATION IMPACT
MICROALGAE

2001 Alexandrium minutum Tumpat, Kelantan Six person were
hospitalized including one

casualty due to PSP

2002 Prorocentrum minimun Johor Bahru, Johor Water discoloration

2005 Cochlodinium Kota Kinabalu, Sabah Water discoloration

polykrikoides

2006 Cochlodinium Kuching, Sarawak and Water discoloration, some

polykrikoides Kota Kinabalu, Sabah fish kills

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TIMELINE HARMFUL LOCATION IMPACT
2007 MICROALGAE
Pangkor, Lumut, Perak Water discoloration
Neoceratium furca and Penang
Shellfish contamination
2009 Pyrodinium Kota Kinabalu and by PSTs with more than
bahamense surrounding areas 7,000 Mouse Unit: ban

of shellfish mollusc
harvesting

In a review of the HABs of South East Asia, Yñigueza et al. (2020) listed the toxic
species from Malaysian waters that includes Pyrodinium bahamense, Alexandrium
tamiyavanichii, A. minutum, Margalefidinium polykrikoides, Noctiluca scintillans,
Karlodinium australe, Chattonella sp., Gymnodinium catenatum, Psuedonitzchia
kodamae, P. abrensis, P. batesiana, P. fukuyoi, P. subfraudulenta, Gambierdiscus balechii,
G. caribaeus, G. pacificus, Coolia malayensis, C. tropicalis, C. palmyrensis, Fukuyoa
paulensis, Amphidinium spp., Neoceratium furca, Prorocentrum lima, P. caipirignum, P.
malayense, P. concavum, P. emarginatum, P. mexicanum, and P. cordatum.

Ballast water is water held in ballast tanks of ships to provide stability and manoeuvrability
when ships are not carrying cargo or heavy enough cargo or when stability is required.
The discharge of ballast water is thus carried out as per the requirements of safety issues
and not of its environmental impact. Ballast water may contain non-native species that
may indiscriminately be released in foreign ports, to the point where the International
Martime Organisation has addressed the issue (IMO, 2019a). Ballast water is known
to move toxic organisms between oceans (Hallegraeff & Bolch, 1992; Chang, 1994;
Hallegraeff, 1998, David and Gollasch, 2014).

Ten organisms that are commonly introduced to foreign waters are Cholera (Vibrio
cholera), Cladoceran water flea (Cercopagis pengoi), Chinese mitten crab (Eiocheir
sinensis), toxic algae (red/brown/green tides), Round goby (Neogobius melanostomus),
NorthAmerica comb jelly (Mnemiopsis leidyi), North Pacific Seastar (Asterias amurensis),
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha), Asian Kelp (Undaria pinnatifida), and European
Green Crab (Carcinus maenus) (IMO, 2019b). There is, however, a lack of reporting on
alien species movement by ships in Malaysian ports through ballast water.

Loss of Mangroves

While the impact of poor water quality on marine habitat health has been well
documented (Wong, et al (1995), Shaari et al (2015), Suratman et al (2014), Sandilyan
and Kathiresan (2014), Khalit et al (2017) Sari and Soeprobowati, 2021), less known
is the impact some of these habitats, have on water quality. The most important of
these are by mangroves. Mangroves act as nutrient traps, protecting the fragile and
commercially valuable seagrass and coral reef ecosystems form the deleterious effects
of land-based activities such as smothering by silt or turbidity problems from upland

239

deforestation and mining; pollution from mining and industrial plants, and fertiliser and
pesticide runoff from agriculture. (PHILNATMANACOM, 1987). The way mangroves
do this is by trapping sediment, extracting nutrients from circulating water to prevent
eutrophication, by sequestering heavy metals and breaking down harmful organic
pollutants through microbial activity (Snedaker and Getter,1985).

Despite this importance, mangroves have been heavily targeted for clearing and
development. It was found that Malaysia currently has about 630,000 ha of mangroves,
where 60% found in Sabah, 22% in Sarawak and 18% in Peninsular Malaysia, while
the rate of mangroves deforestation was about 0.13% from 1990 and 2017 (Omar and
Misman, 2020).

This loss in mangroves means that not only are the ecological and biodiversity values
and food security offered by these habitats are compromised, but their function to
mitigate marine pollution and riverine sediment load is also lost.

Lack of Research, Development and Monitoring

The aquatic biological diversity of coastal ecosystems has not been fully explored
and studied. Critical habitats like mangroves, mudflats, seagrasses and corals require
research and monitoring into their connectivity and linkages in terms of bulk movement,
nutrient dynamics, carbon and energy flow and the effect of climate change on these
habitats.

Much works needs to be done on the medicinal value and food value of the biodiversity
within the coastal habitats and as such, their need for protection becomes even more
important.

It is also imperative that attention is given towards increasing citizen science participation
for coastal residents. Empowering coastal residents to be stewards and caretakers of
their environment will help in conserving and preserving their environment. These citizen
scientists can be trained to be the eyes and ears of enforcement agencies and can aid
in monitoring of coastal habitats.

ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACING THE MALAYSIAN MARINE
ENVIRONMENT

The major issue relating to the Malaysian marine environment relates to the fact that,
despite its size and strategic, economic, and social values, there is no overarching policy
dictating its utilisation. While instruments like marine spatial planning are currently being
advocated at a global level, statutory planning regimes in Malaysia under the Town and
Country Planning Act (Act 172) such as the national physical plan, state structure plan,
local plan and special area plan are limited to terrestrial areas . This means intertidal
coastal habitats as well as deeper waters are not within the ambit of a comprehensive
planning framework. Shipping, marine environment, fisheries and marine biodiversity,
and their various impacts now work independently, often inconsistently, with each other.

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For instance, merchants ships are obliged to comply with solid waste disposal standards
under the MARPOL requirements that Malaysia has agreed to. This is of major
significance, since the Straits of Malaccan on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia is
one of the busiest sea lanes in the world. Fisheries vessel, on the other hand, are not
subject to the same regulations.

The common use of the marine environment by a multiplicity of parties and the fragmented
governance mechanisms that accompany it means that the current environmental
challenges that it faces cannot be resolved. Marine water quality is a facet of this overall
problem. The view that the ocean is an inexhaustible nutrient sink capable of absorbing
that is thrown at it an idea that has long been discredited. What is clear is that marine
water quality cannot be sustained by the current fragmented management regime.

Malaysia needs to treat its marine estate as it does its land – as something that demands
planning and management. This would need to take into account the fact that in land,
something in one place does necessarily affect another site, i.e. planning impacts can
be disaggregated. Planning in the marine environment does not work this way. Marine
spatial planning is not just an extension of the 2 – dimensional land use spatial planning
paradigm. It is 4 -dimensional – look at depth, currents and where those currents lead
us. The fundamentals are totally different and legal, institutional and human resources
for all these are yet to be there.

What is needed is a national ocean policy, while this has been previously advocated,
has yet to yet to be undertaken. It is critical that the numerous legislative and policy
instruments relating to the nation’s marine estate be coordinated and consolidated.
Marine water quality would only be a facet, but of crucial importance, in that discussion.

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AUTHOR

Dr. Gopinath Nagaraj is a fisheries and marine environmental
aspects specialist with a wide experience (over 30 years) in the
sustainable development and management of living aquatic
resources. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Aquatic Biology, Master’s
Degree in Aquaculture and Advanced Certificate in Marine Hatchery
Management and Genetics and PhD in Recreational Fisheries. He
was the former Director of Fisheries for Melaka and Negeri Sembilan
before his retirement in 1994 to pursue his consultancy practice.
Currently, he is the Principal Consultant in FanLi Marine and
Consultancy Sdn. Bhd. and has been involved in the Malaysian fisheries and aquatic
environmental industry. Dr. Gopinath has over 30 publications to his credit. In addition,
he has edited or published over 5 books on marine environment and aquaculture in
Malaysia. He is also a registered EIA Consultant (Fisheries and Aquaculture) with the
Natural Resources and Environment Board, Sarawak.

Dr. Harinder Rai Singh is an ecologist (marine & coastal and
freshwater) with wide experience in fisheries and invertebrates.
He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Education (Hons) Biology (USM),
Master’s Degree in Marine Ecology (UM) and PhD in Marine
Ecology/Biology (UM). He has over 30 years of experience in the
Malaysian marine, coastal and freshwater environments and been
involved in research related to marine & coastal and freshwater
fisheries, coastal invertebrates, mangroves, terrestrial habitat
management and marine parks management studies. Currently, he is attached to the
Faculty of Applied Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Shah Alam and has
supervised undergraduate, Masters and PhD students in research projects as well as
principal investigator and co-researcher to 20 research projects. He has been invited as
keynote, plenary and invited speaker in international and national conferences/seminars/
workshops. Dr. Harinder has also been appointed as Expert Panel and Reviewer for
the Terms of Reference (TOR) and Environmental Impact Assessment Studies (EIA –
Second Schedule) for the Department of Environment Malaysia, Committee Member for
the National Mangrove and Coastal Tree Species Replanting Programme and reviewer
of grants under MESTECC (Research and Development and Commercialisation). He is
also registered as Subject Specialist (CEP-SS0264) by the Department of Environment,
Malaysia.

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Ms. Puvanes holds a Master of Environment from Universiti Putra
Malaysia (UPM) and Bachelor of Applied Sciences (Aquatic Biology)
from University of Science Malaysia (USM). She has over 22 years
of experience and has since been involved in a wide spectrum of
aquatic (both marine and freshwater) environmental studies, fisheries
and aquaculture. She has been involved in numerous environmental
impacts assessments, environmental monitoring, integrated river
basin management, integrated shoreline management plan, regional
development master plan and offshore environmental studies for oil and gas industry.
Currently, she is the Managing Director in FanLi Marine and Consultancy Sdn. Bhd. and
responsible for the overall management and direction of the company. Ms. Puvanes
has several publications relating to fisheries and marine ecology. She is also registered
as an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Consultant and Subject Specialist (CEP-
CS0114) by the Department of Environment, Malaysia as well as by Natural Resources
and Environment Board, Sarawak.

Ms. Norhayati holds a Bachelor of Applied Sciences (Fisheries
Science) from University College of Science and Technology Malaysia
(KUSTEM), Terengganu (now University Malaysia Terengganu,
UMT) and has over 16 years of experience in aquatic environmental
studies and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). She has
in depth good knowledge in environmental sampling work in rivers,
coastal and offshore waters. She is currently an Environmental
Consultant in Fanli Marine and Consultancy Sdn. Bhd. and has been
registered as Assistant Consultant (CEP-AC0492) by the Department of Environment,
Malaysia.

249