Ferry services’ disruption was caused by environmental mismanagement

The disruption of ferry services on February 2 has caused over 400 passengers on route from Langkawi to Kuala Perlis stranded for 8 hours.

Although it was reported that the cause of the disruption was due to low tide, it actually highlighted the problem of environmental mismanagement.

The immediate dredging that cost RM13.8 million to deepen the basin following the incident has indirectly shown that the episode can be prevented if the surrounding environment was managed properly in the first place.

The siltation in the area is not new but has been an issue since 2013. It was announced at that time that the periodical dredging cost the state RM40 million for 2 years. And the government was working to relocate the ferry terminal.

However, after 10 years, no progress is seen for the terminal relocation and the siltation has not been managed. Sustainable measure by the government seems absent.

Silting problem is not unique to Kuala Perlis but has been reported in other states like Kedah. Even though 1,500 fishermen were affected in Kedah but there has not been any action taken to address the problem.

The government needs proper environmental management as a sustainable approach to prevent the abovementioned incident from occurring again.

Por Cheng Han
Committee member of Sustainable Malaysia