SIBU: There is a need for the government to enact more comprehensive laws and policies to address electronic waste management following the increasing use of electric vehicles (EVs) which is expected to pose a major challenge to local authorities in the future.
Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) chairman, Clarence Ting Ing Horth said the emergence of EVs and the increase in modern electronic equipment required a new approach to waste management.
“This is because its components such as batteries and electronic devices have the potential to negatively impact public health and the environment if not managed properly.
“Although the amount of computer and ICT equipment waste is currently still small, the increase in EV use in the future requires early planning from now on,” he told the media during a recycling campaign programme at the E-Waste Recycling
Centre organised by the Sarawak ICT Association (SICTA) in Grand Heights here on Sunday afternoon (Dec 28).
The programme was officiated by Deputy Minister of Public Health, Housing and Local Government, Datuk Michael Tiang Ming Tee and was attended by SICTA Sibu Branch chairman, Kong Sieng Kieng.
Ting said steps that needed to be taken included the formulation of appropriate policies and legislation to ensure that electronic waste disposal could be carried out safely and effectively.
In line with this, he believed that it was “very necessary” for SICTA to voice this problem to help local authorities address this ‘future’ problem in the management of EV components.
Meanwhile, Tiang praised the efforts of SICTA, which had been running an e-waste recycling campaign for almost two decades as part of its corporate social responsibility.
He emphasised the role of the association in helping the government to meet future waste challenges.
The provision of e-waste recycling centres also needed to be expanded because one centre alone ws not enough to meet the needs of the growing city of Sibu, he added.
Tiang urged the public not to keep old electronic equipment at home or throw it into drains, rivers and roadsides.
“Sustainable waste management is in line with the aspirations of the Post-COVID-19 Development Plan 2030 (PCDS 2030) which places environmental sustainability as one of the main pillars of Sarawak’s development,” he said.
Tiang proposed that SMC open another e-waste management centre in Taman Indah to make it easier for the public to dispose of such waste.
“If the e-waste centre is already here (Grand Heights), we want it to be established in the downstream part of Sibu, namely, in Taman Indah at the Sunday Market to make it easier for people to dispose of their waste,” Tiang added.
