Waste Management in Malaysia

This article discusses the significance of waste management in Malaysia, including the issues related to solid waste management and government measures to control waste. It also provides recommendations and challenges for waste management.

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MANAGERIAL ECONOMICS

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Table of Contents
Introduction...........................................................................................................................................3
Significance of waste management........................................................................................................3
Issues related to Solid waste management............................................................................................3
Reduction, minimization, and recycling of wastes..................................................................................4
Avoidance of solid waste....................................................................................................................5
Solid waste reduction.........................................................................................................................5
Reuse of Solid Wastes........................................................................................................................5
Recycling of solid waste......................................................................................................................5
Recovery of energy.............................................................................................................................6
Disposal of Solid Waste......................................................................................................................6
Government measures to control the wastes in Malaysia......................................................................6
Recommendation...................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion..............................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Municipal waste management has become an important issue, which if not solved will
affect the economic growth of growing cities such as Malaysia. Malaysia has a good market
economy in comparison to other cities in Southeast Asia and is ranking in Southeast Asia is
fourth. Since the last 50 years, the average GDP of Malaysia is 6.5 percent per annum. One of
the main sources of waste is from construction activity. An average of thirty-five percent of solid
waste generates from construction activities. According to the Malaysian municipal corporation
survey in 2012 the solid waste generation was 33000 tons. The nature and the sources of the
solid waste must be identified and classified so that it can assist the waste management to
manage the wastes efficiently which can lead to increase in the economic growth of the country.
Waste management is generally a process in which several types of wastes are identified and
categorized and then it is collected and after that, it is processed and the last step is that it is
recycled accordingly. Malaysia is expanding in various sectors such as tourism, science,
commerce, etc. For solid waste management, Malaysia is highly reliable on landfills.
Significance of waste management
In 2001, the solid wastes in Malaysia had been estimated at about 5.475 million tons.
Most of the waste generates from urban areas of Malaysia. Almost 65 percent of the total waste
generates from the urban population of Malaysia. The main objective of waste management is to
eliminate or reduce the generation of waste management in Malaysia so that it will not affect the
health of the people of Malaysia. In 2010, the population of Malaysia was 27,565,821 as
compared to the population in the year 2000 which was 22,198,276. As it can be seen that the
population rate has been increased significantly and with the increased population the generation
of solid wastes has also been increased. Plastics, foods, papers are the main components of
wastes in Malaysia. From 1975-2005, the composition of plastic and paper has been increased
significantly. Almost 80 percent of the solid waste generates from these components. In Kuala
Lumpur which is the largest city and capital of Malaysia, the generation of solid waste is
increasing rapidly. According to de Oliveira (2016), there is also inorganic waste such as waste
from metal, waste generated from plastics and waste generated from the glass. The toxic level of
the wastes is very high, which if not control will affect the economy as well as the lifestyle of
Malaysian residents. The composition of waste is also influenced by factors such as standard of
living, weather, geographical location and as well as energy sources. The practices to control
solid waste should be modified and updated.
Issues related to Solid waste management
The poor management of solid waste is one of the main issues in Malaysia. The solid
waste should be characterized by composition, kinds of solid waste, generation rates, and

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sources. In Malaysia, the sources of solid waste vary according to the standard of the economy
and the size of the city. In the southern and central regions of Malaysia, 28.34 percent of solid
waste generates from construction and industrial wastes, 36.73 percent generates from household
waste and the balance generates from other sources. In 2003, the waste which was generated in
different sectors in Kuala Lumpur has been shown in this table no. 1
Different sectors Percentage of waste
generation
Generation of solid waste(ton
per day)
Waste from office 3.6 68.9
Waste from wood- fallen tree 3.7 71.5
Waste from residential 33.6 647.1
Waste from market areas 3.5 67.8
Waste from commercial
sectors
12.7 244.1
Waste from hospital 0.9 17.5
Waste from industry 13.2 253.4
Others waste 20.1 386.2
Waste from wood-park 1.2 23.7
Waste from wood-road 7.5 143.9
TOTAL 100 1924
TABLE NO.1
The professionalism is very poor and weak in solid waste management of Malaysia. The
knowledge, skills, and efficiency of the experts to handle solid waste require improvisation. As
opined by Bohari, et al. (2017), due to a lack of efficient employees and technologies, Malaysia
still fails to design, construct, plan and implement and manage the waste efficiently. These
failures affected the economic growth of the city.
Reduction, minimization, and recycling of wastes
There are different kinds of waste such as liquid waste, solid waste, electronic waste,
gaseous waste, etc. The management hierarchy of waste has developed strategies to manage
waste efficiently. The objective of management hierarchy is to produce maximum products
which are beneficial for the society from the wastes. There is a particular format of management
hierarchy of waste:

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Table no. 2
Avoidance of solid waste
This principle prescribed that the industries should use materials which are less hazardous
in the production of their products. Industries should be planned, design, and implement their
strategies in such a way which will result in less harmful wastages.
Solid waste reduction
This principle prescribed that the companies should be proactive in reduction of wastes
which are produced while manufacturing the products. If the materials which they are using
contain toxic at a high level then they should change their materials immediately.
Reuse of Solid Wastes
It means the reuse of equipment and materials which are not in good condition and which
cannot be used in the future. This assists in the reduction of waste and it also decreases the costs
which are related to the manufacturing of products.
Recycling of solid waste
According to Teo, (2016), it is a strategy where the waste materials are reused to manufacture a
product. The various forms of waste materials are collected and then it is recycled to produce a
new product. Recycling helps to save energy and also to prevent pollution.
Avoidance of solid
waste
Solid waste
reduction
Reuse of solid waste
Recycling of wastes
Recovery of energy
Disposal of solid
wastes

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Recovery of energy
In this process, the waste is converted to energy. The waste materials which are not able
to get recycled to form a new product are used to convert into energy forms such as light,
electricity, heat, etc. Different kinds of processes such as anaerobic digestion, combustion,
landfill recovery of gas are carried out to convert the waste into different forms of energy.
Disposal of Solid Waste
Disposal is the last stage of waste reduction. According to Tey, Goh & Ang, (2017),
Landfills are one of the most popular forms of disposal of solid wastes. Landfilling is one of the
most popular techniques for waste management in Malaysia. However, highly polluted leachate
is generated during landfilling. The quantity and quality of water which is formed during
landfilling depend on the component such as the technique of landfilling, seasonal variation,
compaction method, etc. Incinerator is also one of the popular methods to dispose of hazardous
and clinical wastes.
Government measures to control the wastes in Malaysia
In 2013, the Malaysian government has spent approximately RM1, one hundred and
thirty-six million to control the waste. To manage the solid waste the Malaysian government has
done research on how to control the wastes. The local government of Malaysia and the ministry
of housing are the major stakeholders who are responsible for the management of wastes
produced by the manufacturing industry in Malaysia. They provide guidelines and measures on
how to manage and control the industrial wastes. According to Tang, et al. (2019), Ministry of
environment and natural sources is also focusing on to control the wastes produced by the
manufacturing industries. The Malaysian government has planned several strategies to manage
the solid waste produced by the manufacturing and construction industries. The government of
Malaysia has given a commitment that by 2020, the emission of carbon dioxide will be reduced
to 40 percent. The main objective of the government of Malaysia is to enhance the value of solid
waste management so that the government can effectively manage the production of solid waste.
The Malaysian government has given approval for the Public cleansing Act in 2007. The aim of
the Act was to enhance the service quality in managing the waste. But the local authorities
Malaysia was not satisfied with the service qualities and the strategies of the public cleansing
Act, so it took time to implement this Act. The Act was implemented in the year 2011, in 7
states. Malaysian government has drafted many of the environmental laws to manage the waste.
a) The environmental quality Act 2014 (clean air regulation): The objective of this act
was to reduce the air pollutions which are emitted from the manufacturing and
construction activities. For instance, power plants, fuel plants. The persons or residents or
companies who are found guilty in this act shall be punishable with imprisonment of not
less than 2 years or with fine of not less than RM 100000 or with both.

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b) The environmental quality Act 2009 (industrial effluent regulation): This Act is
applicable on the companies which released mixed effluents or effluents from industries.
If any person or companies fails to comply with the Act will be punishable with
imprisonment of not less than five years or with fine of not less than RM 100000 or with
both.
c) The environmental quality Act, 1974: This Act came into force to control, abate and
prevent the pollution and also to improve the environment. If any person or companies
fails to follow the rules of this Act will be punishable with imprisonment of not less than
two years or fines of not less than RM 100000 or with both.
Recommendation and challenges of waste management
The first element to effectively manage the solid waste produced by the industries is
proper education. Education is the necessary element which can control the production of waste
and also can effectively manage solid waste. Malaysia government should conduct the necessary
program so that the people will be aware of the environment, as to how to keep the environment
to live a healthy life. There should be a proper design of the management system of solid waste.
The design should be tested and if it is giving proper result only then it should be implemented
otherwise not. As opined by Wen, Siong & Noor (2015), Sustainable management of solid wastes
are influenced by different elements such as the health of public, public awareness, the value of
solid waste, protection of environment etc. the industrialist, businessman, traders etc. should
maintain a balance between the transport system, pattern of using the land, health of the public,
urban development and the subsystem of construction and manufacturing industries. It has been
reported that wastes are smuggled from countries such as Japan, United States, Canada,
Australia, and China to Malaysia. Since, last few months of 2019, the smuggling process is being
carried on. So an arrangement has been done to ship back solid waste in 60 containers of almost
3000 tons to the countries from where the waste has been smuggled into the country. The
arrangement has been done by the Ministry of technology, science, energy, climate and
environment (MESTECC). As these wastes are smuggled from different countries Malaysian
people are being affected by these wastes. MESTECC is considering doing analysis such as cost
benefit analysis, so that it can inspect the process as when considering necessary. The Basel
convention has given the right to the Malaysian government to ship back the solid waste to the
countries from where they have been entered into the country of Malaysia. It is necessary to
build a suitable sustainable environment, so as to achieve the goal of sustainability. There should
be a modification or up gradation in dumping of open landfills. It should be modified or
upgraded to sanitary landfills or engineered landfills so that the environment will be less affected
by the dumping of open landfills. The behavior of the public of Malaysia is crucial to reduce
solid waste. The people of Malaysia should cooperate with the government and help them to
reduce the solid waste being produced by manufacturing and construction industry and also to
reduce the organic and inorganic waste. Composting is also a useful way of recycling all those

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waste which are biodegradable and then compost it. Malaysia is facing difficulties such as
scarcity of land and also emission of dangerous gases such as greenhouse gases, and to remove
these difficulties, Malaysia government should implement a better and useful strategy to manage
the waste.
Conclusion
It has been found that the solid waste has been increased significantly in Malaysia and
also in the capital city of Malaysia that is Kuala Lumpur. It has been found that to increase the
value of practices of waste management, the government of Malaysia should develop different
strategies and also upgrade and update its technologies. It has been analyzed that different
strategies will result in improvement in the tourism industry and that too without affecting the
environment of Malaysia. It has also been concluded that if the waste has not been managed
properly and effectively, it will affect the lifestyle and standards of the people of Malaysia,
which in turn will affect the economy of the country. It has been analyzed that different
techniques and methods should be used to manage solid waste such as landfills and incinerator.
The Malaysian government should conduct different programs and campaigns to aware the
people of Malaysia regarding environmental protections.

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