1.0 TAWAU DISTRICT

The Environmental Hotspots Survey for the district of Tawau was carried out on 30 ^th March 1999 (Tuesday). The survey included an interview with the President of Tawau Municipal Council and a few representatives from other relevant government departments, and site visits to selected areas. Information gathered from the meeting and interview with the representatives of Government Departments in the District was used as a basis for the survey.

1.2 WASTE DISPOSAL ISSUES

The existing regulations pertaining to waste disposal in the district are the Tawau Municipal Council (Conservancy and Hygiene) By-laws, 1984 and the Tawau Municipal Council (Anti-Litter) By-laws, 1984. The Council also has a policy which requires residents to pack their rubbish in a bag before throwing into a bin.

The collection of waste in the district has been privatised since 1991. It is under the management of a company called Sharijadi Sdn. Bhd. The rating area for the Council covers areas within the 4 mile-radius of the town centre.

At present, the district does not have any regulations on how wastes are sorted. Recycling facilities are also not available in the district.

Awareness raising activities such as gotong-rotong and campaigns are organised as and when required. At the village level, the JKKK usually organises awareness raising campaigns on the environment.

Waste facilities such as bins are provided to residential areas, villages and shophouses within the Council’s rating area. Collection of wastes is carried out from house to house. Wastes are collected three times a week in residential area, and daily in shophouses. There are 12 8-tonne lorries operating within the rating area. The official dumping ground for the district in located in Mile 9, Jalan Merotai (Bukit Gemok area). Maintenance of this dumping ground is under a different company called Pemborong Jaya Baru.

Up to now, no waste collection service is provided to residents outside the rating area. Those within the rating area pay assessment tax that includes payment for waste collection service and other services by the Council. The Council spends about RM 129,000 per month for waste collection and RM 14,500 for maintenance of the dumping ground.

According to the President of TMC, indiscriminate dumping of waste is a problem to the Council. The problem of illegal squatters is high in the district. Potentially polluting wastes in the district are plastics and used oil from workshops. There is a waste water treatment plant in KM 7, off Jalan Apas under the maintenance of PWD.

According to TMC, most industries in the district have their own incinerator to dispose off their wastes.

1.2.1 Site Visit

As generally observed during the survey, indiscriminate dumping of waste is a major problem in the district. This is especially true in squatter settlements (legal and illegal), bus stops and other public places (including some of the beaches e.g. Batu Payong). The team visited three squatter settlements in Kg. Pisang, Kg. Hidayat (by UNCHR), Kg. Kinabutan Kecil and Kg. Titingan (or ‘Icebox’). Kg. Pisang is a settlement along a stream. Indiscriminate dumping was observed along the bank ( Photo 4 ). The other settlements are found along the coast. Photo 6 and Photo 10 show indiscriminate dumping of waste in Kg. Kinabutan Kecil and Kg. Titingan, respectively. One of the villages in Tg. Batu Laut also faces a serious problem of waste disposal ( Photo 5 ). Waste disposal problem as observed in Merotai Besar is not serious ( Photo 1 ).

A visit to the official dumping ground in Mile 9, Jalan Merotai was carried out. The area is surrounded with oil palm plantation, in which there is a hut in the middle of the dumping ground ( Photo 2 ). Scavengers were also observed to flock around in the dumping ground.

1.3 POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT ON NON-RESERVED WETLAND AREAS (RECLAMATION ON WETLANDS)

Aquaculture projects in Tawau ( Photo 7 ) are the biggest in Sabah, according to TMC. They are located around the Batu Payong area. Land for the purpose of aquaculture is mostly private. The owners usually obtain their permits from the Fisheries Department.

An existing area of an Integrated Timber Complex (ITC) in Pasir Putih sits (partially or fully?) on a reclaimed area as shown in ( Photo 3 ). The ITC, which began in 1985/86, is expanding.

1.4 LIVESTOCK FARMING

Table 1 presents the list of livestock farms in Tawau provided by DOVSAI (Department of Veterinary Services and Animal Industry) Headquarters.

1.4.1 Site Visit

The team managed to locate a few farms in the district, but information from the farm manager could not be obtained due to the unavailability of the farm managers and time limitation. Six farms were located during the survey. They are Evergrowth Poultry Farm in Mile 15, Jalan Apas; Triwana Sdn. Bhd. Breeding Farm in Kinagat; and four poultry farms (two big and two small) off Mile 7, Jalan Apas. One of the small farms belongs to Evergrowth Poultry Farm. One of the big farms off Mile 7 Jalan Apas is shown in Photo 9 .

1.5 SAND SOURCING IN RIVERS

There is no river sand mining activities in the district. Sand mining activities are only operating on land. One of the land sand mining activities was observed at Mile 17, Jalan Apas. There is a big quarry company called Otentik Sdn. Bhd. in Kg. Tanjung Batu Laut.

Generally, most of the rivers observed during the survey do not face serious sedimentation and erosion problems. Sg. Merotai and Sg. Balung were did not face any of the problems mentioned earlier. However, moderate sedimentation was observed in Sg. Apas and Sg. Tawau.

1.6 SUMMARY OF SURVEY ANALYSIS

Information gathered from interview with Local Authority in the District of Tawau indicated that the District has adequate Laws and regulation in dealing with the problems of waste disposal within the district rating area. Information on the system also seems to indicate that it is in place. However, visual observation of the condition of the town within the rating area with regards to waste disposal does not correlate with the information given by the Authority in the District. Overall condition of the town showed that indiscriminate dumping of wastes throughout the rating area is serious. Garbage heaps are seen everywhere in the rating area. Even worst problem is seen outside the rating area where no collection is done.

Tawau district has a large and numerous squatter areas and waste disposal in these areas are very serious. It was indicated by the Local Authority that part of the problems in extending services to these areas is the safety of the Council personnel.

In areas such the livestock, wetlands and river sand-mining, the problems are common to other district.

From the information obtained from the Authority and the actual information gathered from ground survey, it is difficult to ascertain the real reason for the discrepancies of the information from a rapid assessment without a detail analysis of the situation. Bridging the two information without a detail analysis may present misleading information.

Poultry Farms (Broiler)
Name of Owner/Operator			District		Production Rate No. of chickens/month
Richpeak S/B			Tawau		16,000
Evergrowth Poultry			Tawau		80,000
Ladang Ternakan Triwana S/B			Tawau		65,000
Chong Hon Yu			Tawau		10,000
Pakar Manir			Tawau		15,000
Poultry Farms (Eggs)
Name of Owner/Operator			District		Production Rate No. of Eggs/Day
Evergrowth Poultry Farm			Tawau		20,000
Sri Tawau Farming S/B			Tawau		80,000
Tong Len Trading			Tawau		180,000
Consolidated Farm S/B			Tawau		170,000
Triwana Farm			Tawau		20,000
Duck Farms (Broiler)
Name of Owner/Operator			District		Production Rate No. of Ducks/Month
Wong Teck Fui			Tawau		2,500
Wong Teck Kong			Tawau		3,000
Chung Kui Wah			Tawau		2,000
Pig Farms
Name of Owner/Operator	Address	District		Sow		Boar	1998 TOTAL SPP
Consolidated Farm	Apas Road B 16	TWU		800		10	8,000
Consolidated Farm	Apas Road B 9	TWU		250		25	2,500
Hang Sang Farm	Apas Road	TWU		10		2	100
Pang Siew Len	Apas Road	TWU		10		2	100
Ting Eng Lee	Sin On Road	TWU		30		4	300
Tong Len Trading	Apas Road	TWU		250		26	2,500
Vun Vu Sang	Sin On Road	TWU		15		3	150