Science, Environment and Technology Minister Datuk Law Hieng Ding had said that one-third of the 120 main rivers in the country were polluted. It comes as no surprise when industries and individuals treat rivers like open sewers. The quality of clean water, reflected by the percentage of clean rivers registered, had fallen from 55.8 per cent in 1985 to 27.5 per cent in 1998. Which explains why the Government is placing so much importance in cleaning up our rivers. Campaign launched on Nov 10 by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the second of such campaign organised by the Drainage and Irrigation Department, to raise our awareness, empathy and care towards rivers.
Rivers are an invaluable part of our heritage.
And as he rightly pointed out, clean rivers are not only good for recreational purposes but they can become tourist attractions, too. Let's play our part and hope that our children and grandchildren will know what a clean river is like.