WHEN Dr Kalithasan Kailasam asked a group of students at an environment camp for an example of a clean river, they pointed to a picture of a soothing stream in a jungle. They did not realise that the other photographs of brown and murky waters were also from the same source that is Sungai Pencala.
The message on environment conservation became clear to the 30 SMK Kelana Jaya students who took part in the three-day camp at Hulu Gombak recently. The camp was part of a concerted effort by the Petaling Jaya Municipal Council, Global Environment Centre (GEC), Selangor Department of Environment, Petaling District Education Department, Department of Irrigation and Drainage, Alam Flora, Indah Water Konsortium and Universiti Malaya to educate the younger generation on environment conservation.
Besides discussions and workshops, the students also compared the quality of water at the crystal-clear Sungai Gombak upstream with the polluted Kelana Jaya Park lakes.
“Nine out of 10 urban residents may have never seen crystal-clear water,” said Dr Kalithasan, a programme officer with GEC. “Now, that the students have seen the best river in Hulu Gombak and the worst in Kelana Jaya Park, it is up to them to think about what they can do about it,” he said.
At the end of the camp, a group of students who came up with the best action plan to reduce pollution received a RM1,000 grant to implement it. They suggested that each school adopted and rehabilitated a lake where activities could be held. The other proposals included distributing brochures to the public and setting up of a website on lake and river preservation.
Since 2002, the centre, MPPJ and other government agencies have been involved in the rehabilitation of the Kelana Jaya Park lakes. This is followed by awareness and education campaigns under PJ Local Agenda 21, which invites participation of the community, private sector and government in Petaling Jaya’s development. Now, they want to do the same for Sungai Pencala.
“We want to educate primary and secondary students on pollution issues, besides those living near rivers,” said Dr Kalithasan, adding that the government authorities, their partners in the private sector and NGOs could help sustain the environment. “But, if it lacked public participation, then the aim will fail.”
Sungai Pencala flows from Bukit Kiara into two main tributaries – one, through the KL Golf and Country Club and the other through the Lembah Kiara Recreational Park in Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
The two tributaries converge near a sewage treatment plant in Damansara. Eventually, the river flows into Sungai Kelang near Kampung Penaga. However, the river and its tributaries become polluted as they flow through residential and industrial areas.
“We want to mobilise the communities in the catchment area to be involved in the rehabilitation project. Each will have its own activities, but share a common objective,” said Dr Kalithasan. The river and lake management projects, involving the centre, are funded by the Danish International Development Agency and United Nations Development Programme-Global Environment Foundation Small Grant Fund.
Schools and communities that are interested in becoming a part of the project to clean Sungai Pencala can call GEC at 03-79572007 or e-mail Dr Kalithasan at kalithasan@genet.po.my