JOHOR BARU – Sg Kim Kim in Pasir Gudang here is one of the pilot river reserve areas that will be upgraded into a recreational site under the National River Trail programme, in an effort to conserve the state’s rivers.
Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad said the river reserve area would be developed as a recreational park with the construction of a river trail.
He said about 2,000 kilometres of affected rivers in the state had been selected from a total of 10,000 kilometres across the country to be developed into river trail routes and recreation sites for local communities.
“The construction of river trails is a nature-based-solution (NBS) approach to addressing socio-environmental challenges through sustainable management and environment use, and will be implemented by the Environment and Water Ministry.
“The presence of members of the public in the area will prevent irresponsible parties from turning the river into a waste dump,” he told reporters at Sg Kim Kim today.
According to Hasni, the initial cost to beautify the area and build a trail would be RM500,000.
As Sg Kim Kim flows through an industrial area, he said, the trail programme required the cooperation and contributions of factories around the area to ensure its success.
“Although the programme is a government initiative, corporate bodies, non-governmental organisations and the local community will take the lead in adopting the selected trail areas as their own, implementing beautification and maintenance, and formulating awareness programmes,” he said.
Apart from the involvement of various agencies under the ministry, four public institutions of higher learning, namely Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, and Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka are also helping landscape the trail along Sg Kim Kim.
On March 7, 2019, toxic pollution in Sg Kim Kim affected nearly 6,000 residents, including school students, causing 111 schools in the Pasir Gudang area to be closed temporarily. – Bernama, March 20, 2021
