10 Oct 2006(NSTP)  - KULAI: A palm oil mill in Kelapa Sawit found polluting the air was issued a stop-work order yesterday.

Department of Environment officers found that the smoke emission level from the mill was unhealthy and making the haze situation worse.

The raid came through the new public tip-off system, a first in the country, set up last month to nab polluters red-handed and protect the state’s resources.

State Tourism and Environment Committee chairman Freddie Long said the palm oil mill, which has been in operation for 20 years, had previously been issued with many summonses by the DOE.

He said the mill’s management would comply with DOE regulations after being issued with each summon, but would soon ignore the regulations again.

"This time around we’ll ensure that the mill remains closed until the management does the necessary upgrading work to stop the pollution once and for all.

"The smoke was thick with black soot which was carried up to a radius of a kilometre," he said.

Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (Tamil) Ladang Kelapa Sawit, located right beside the mill, was the worst hit with pupils forced to study under unhealthy conditions.

The state government’s tip-off system comprises a hotline (07-2366528) manned by two officers between 8am and 7pm.

Calls after these hours can be made to Long’s handphone (012-7779911) or DOE director Ab Rahman Awang (019-7135851).