Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Malaysia will raise the issue of plastic pollution plaguing the world when it hosts the ASEAN Summit 2025, Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Nik Nazmi Nik Admad told the press on July 16.
The cross-border haze is also put at the focus of the environmental issues in the bloc, he said, adding other regional countries are facing similar problems.
He stressed that ASEAN member states should work together to handle the issues, and Malaysia is working hard to find a comprehensive solution.
Deputy Prime Minister Fadillah Yusof said the National Water Research Institute of Malaysia (NAHRIM) was conducting research related to the presence of new pollutants on water quality in several river basins in Malaysia, including endocrine disruptors, antimicrobial resistance, and also microplastics.
The World Health organisation (WHO) defines microplastics as plastic fragments less than 5mm in size that enter the river system through various pathways, mainly surface water runoff, wastewater effluents (both treated and untreated), industrial effluents and decomposed plastic waste.
Earlier, Nik Ahmad said the government is considering the introduction of specific laws to deal with the problem of plastics dumping and pollution which was a major issue in the country./.
