BUTTERWORTH – The global illegal e-waste trade reared its ugly head in Penang again when the Environment Department (DoE) and the Customs Department intercepted one such shipment at a container terminal here.
In a statement, state DoE director Sharifah Zakiah Syed Sahab said the authorities have insisted to the cargo agent that the shipment be sent back to its original country.
Based on a tip-off, enforcement officers from the two departments raided the North Butterworth Container Terminal, where the shipment was left, and discovered that it was full of electronic waste from the United States.
The container was held as authorities became suspicious after the shipment was declared as “aluminium alloy” in its manifest.
There were 38 pallets in the 40-ft container, loaded with waste associated with printed circuit boards, internal hard discs, CPUs, and other electronic components.
Under Sections 31 and 37 of the Environment Quality Act 1974, court action can be taken under Section 34B where importers of such waste can be fined a maximum of RM500,000 and imposed with mandatory five-year imprisonment.
The importer’s address is listed at Klang in Selangor.
“The DoE is now carrying out sampling on the waste to determine its origins,” Sharifah said.
She explained that the process of breaking down the e-waste can be considered dangerous to the environment due to the toxins it may generate.
“Hence under the Basel Convention, such a form of e-waste trade is prohibited and the process to treat it as waste is best done by the host country,” she added.
Sharifah warned that the authorities will clamp down hard on such imports, as Malaysia wants no part in treating illegal household or industrial waste unless approval is obtained from the authorities. – The Vibes, December 8, 2022
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