Environmental Quality Act 1974 · Updated to 7 Jul 2024 · Part IV · Prohibition and Control of Pollution
24. Restrictions on pollution of the soil
Official textFrom Laws of Malaysia Online, unchanged
No person shall, unless licensed, pollute or cause or permit to be polluted any soil or surface of any land in contravention of the acceptable conditions specified under section 21.
soil
“soil” includes earth, sand, rock, shales, minerals and vegetation in the soil;
Notwithstanding the generality of subsection (1), a person shall be deemed to pollute any soil or surface of any land if—
he places in or on any soil or in any place where it may gain access to any soil any matter whether liquid, solid or gaseous; or
he establishes on any land a refuse damp, garbage tip, soil and rock disposal site, sludge deposit site, waste injection well or otherwise used land for the disposal of or a repository for solid or liquid wastes so as to be obnoxious or offensive to human beings or interfere with underground water or be detrimental to any beneficial use of the soil or the surface of the land.
Any person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine of not less than fifty thousand ringgit and not exceeding five hundred thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or to both, and shall also be liable to a further fine not exceeding one thousand ringgit for every day during which the offence continues after a notice by the
Director General requiring him to cease the act specified therein has been served on him.
Director General
“Director General” means the Director General of Environmental Quality referred to in section 3;
Terms defined in s 2
beneficial use
Defined · s 2“beneficial use” means a use of the environment or any element or segment of the environment that is conducive to public health, welfare or safety and which requires protection from the effects of wastes, discharges, emissions and deposits;
Director General
Defined · s 2“Director General” means the Director General of Environmental Quality referred to in section 3;
pollution
Defined · s 2“pollution” means an act or process, whether natural or artificial, resulting in the introduction of any pollutant into the environment in contravention of the acceptable conditions as specified in the regulations made under section 21;
soil
Defined · s 2“soil” includes earth, sand, rock, shales, minerals and vegetation in the soil;
waste
Defined · s 2“waste” includes any matter prescribed to be scheduled waste, or any matter whether in a solid, semi-solid or liquid form, or in the form of gas or vapour which is emitted, discharged or deposited in the environment in such volume, composition or manner as to cause pollution. Environmental Quality 17
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Part VI