Fishermen in the Straits of Johor lament the decline in seafood catch. Is it because of pollution around the Johor Causeway?

In an interview with CNA, Dr Serina stressed that the retention of pollutants and debris would lead to “serious” ecological impacts, which would in turn affect health and the economy.

“As long as there’s water flow, material that comes into the channel from the land on either side can move. As (the pollutant) moves, it dissolves and breaks down, which reduces its impact,” Dr. Serina said.

“But when these harmful substances accumulate, the problem becomes more serious. You can’t just flush these harmful substances away.

“There is aquaculture on both sides of the bridge… so when pollutants accumulate, it affects the farmed fish and therefore the quality of the seafood,” she added.

Heritage under threat

The problem of water pollution in the Straits of Johor is not new.

Studies published by Universiti Teknologi Malaysia in 2019 and Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2013 respectively indicated that water samples from the strait contained heavy metal and microplastic pollution.

Pollution issues in tributaries of the Johor Straits have also attracted widespread comment from the authorities.

In 2019, then-Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong expressed concern about pollution and chronic overflowing of the Johor River, a major waterway about 30 kilometers from the Johor Causeway.

Under the water supply agreement signed between Singapore and Malaysia in 1962, Singapore can purchase 250 million gallons of water from the Johor River every day at a price of 3 Malaysian cents per 1,000 gallons.

In 2021, Johor ruler Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar also Criticizes some residents for dumping garbage into the sewer networkincluding rivers and channels flowing into the Tebrau Straits.