Immediate measures already in place against floods, says Malaysian minister
Short-term, low-cost yet high-impact solutions are being implemented to prepare for floods during the north-east monsoon season next month, said Malaysian Environment and Water Minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man.
He said this included drainage maintenance, deepening rivers and raising riverbanks to reduce the impact of floods.
Among others, the Irrigation and Drainage Department has also prepared 284 pumps, 203 vehicles, 35 boats, 995 telemetry stations in Peninsular Malaysia and 317 telemetry stations in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan.
There are also 526 warning sirens, 77 cameras, 605 river gauges and 966 area gauges to measure the depth of floods.
“The government’s long-term measures to reduce the risk of flooding throughout the country, through the implementation of the Flood Mitigation Plan (RTB), will continue.
“A total of 100 RTB projects worth RM10.53 billion (S$3.23 billion) have been approved under the 12th Malaysia Plan and are being implemented nationwide,” Datuk Seri Ibrahim told the Lower House of Parliament on Wednesday.
Tuan Ibrahim said the implementation of RTB projects would increase the number of people and areas protected from the effects of flooding.
He was answering a query from Raub MP Tengku Zulpuri Raja Puji who wanted to know the plan and preliminary actions taken by the Federal Government to face potential major floods in the face of the La Nina phenomenon, the north-east monsoon and heavier than usual rainfall.
Tuan Ibrahim said a non-structural approach in flood management planning such as the Flood Forecasting and Warning Programme was also being implemented.
Phase three of the programme, which costs RM450 million, will complete 74 flood forecasting and warning models for major river basins that are at risk throughout the country, he added.
For the flood control programme in Kuala Lumpur, specific plans involved the implementation of several phases of the Kuala Lumpur Flood Mitigation Programme (KLFM), namely the StormWater Management and Road Tunnel or SMART Tunnel, Gombak Flood Diversion System, Keroh Flood Diversion System and Sungai Bunus RTB project.
“A fully operational KLFM would be able to store floodwaters of up to a maximum of 10 million cubic metres,” he said.