JOHOR BAHRU Johor Water Regulatory Body (BAKAJ) has recently appointed the Centre for Environmental Sustainability and Water Security (IPASA), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) to carry out a study on Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) at Skudai River, Johor on 6th September 2020.
Skudai River is one of the rivers in Malaysia that is categorised as polluted. The water quality at the middle and downstream of the Skudai River falls under Class III of the DOE’s Water Quality Index, which is considered polluted and requires intensive treatment for water supply.
The Sultan Ismail Water Treatment Plant is located at the downstream of the river and there have been many occasions where the treatment plant was shut down due to ammonia pollution.
Therefore, the study led by Prof. Dr. Zulkifli Yusop, together with Prof. Dr. Azmi Aris, Dr. Salmiati, and Dr. Nor Eliza Alias, is aimed at improving the water quality of the river to Class IIA by using the TMDL approach.
The study includes the estimation of the contribution of point and non-point source pollution and proposes the reduction of pollution loading contributed by the pollution sources.
The study has commenced on 1st August 2020 and will be completed in eight months. Following are some photos of Skudai River.