Johor bahru: The company involved in the Sungai Johor pollution incident is set to face fines and will be required to cover the costs associated with recovery and clean-up efforts, as stated by Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh, the State Public Works, Transport, Infrastructure and Communications Committee chairman.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the Johor Land and Mines Office (PTG) has issued an immediate stop-work order on all mining activities linked to the incident. The company's mineral material permit has also been temporarily suspended to facilitate an ongoing investigation. The investigation is being conducted under Section 7A(1)(c) of the Water Enactment 1921 (Amendment 2014) and the Environmental Quality Act 1974.

Meanwhile, Mohamad Fazli noted that a sudden increase in water usage and panic-driven storage by consumers contributed to the drop in water tank levels at various locations, resulting in intermittent water supply. On average, 31 water tankers are making between five and six trips daily to ensure a continuous water supply to the affected users. These tankers, with a combined capacity of 613 cubic metres, are deployed daily to deliver clean water to the impacted areas.

Water supply is expected to be fully restored gradually within the next eight to 12 hours, depending on the stabilisation of pressure and tank refilling. The pollution incident, which affected 455,757 account holders, or nearly 1.8 million residents in Johor, was caused by a burst sand-washing pond at an inland sand mining site in the Kota Tinggi district. This led to the temporary shutdown of a water treatment plant.

As of yesterday, Ranhill SAJ reported that the overall recovery of water supply in Kota Tinggi, Johor Bahru, Pontian, and Kulai had reached 93 percent.