Clean Sg Melaka wins gold Green Apple
By ZAHARAH OTHMAN
SWINDON (Britain): For its efforts to restore, clean and beautify Sungai Melaka, the Malacca Historical City Council has received a gold Green Apple award from The Green Organisation.
Mayor Datuk Zainal Abu received the award here on Monday in a ceremony for international agencies around the world, where five other Malaysian agencies also got awards.
Labuan Corporation and Kumpulan Senireka received the bronze award, while Second Penang Bridge Project and Petaling Jaya City Council received silver and the Energy Commission Malaysia received gold for their environmental effort to make the world a better place to live in.
Zainal said the award recognised the city council's efforts on the Sungai Melaka project, which has since seen an increase of tourists to a total of a million taking the river cruise last year.
"We are one of the agencies helping the state government in its initiative to implement the green elements since 2010.
"With this award from The Green Organisation, Sungai Melaka will be entered in the The Green Book, the only best practice environment reference book, which will be distributed around the world," Zainal said after the award ceremony.
He believed a continued effort and commitment by everybody involved was important "for us to keep on beautifying, improving and maintaining the quality of Sungai Melaka to attract tourists".
"Before the river was polluted but now the quality of water has gone from Grade 4 to Grade 2 and we are now working towards achieving Grade 1. Sungai Melaka has become a catalyst for development."
According to Roger Wolens, managing director of The Green Organisation, since the award started in 1994, several Malaysian agencies had received the award. This year, out of 250 agencies around the world which were nominated, 20 were from Malaysia and six Malaysian agencies received the awards.
He said the judges were particularly impressed by the Sungai Melaka project where the river has been greatly cleaned up, improved and made more attractive and useable for not only the local community but also for river species.
"Species which had not been seen for a long time are now inhabiting the river again. It's good for wildlife, it's good for the local community and it's good for the future that this initiative is being seen and developed."
Malacca city mayor Datuk Zainal Abu (left) and councillor Abdul Razak Abdul Rahman with the gold Green Apple award and citation accorded for theits Sungai Melaka cleanliness and beautification project
Read more: Clean Sg Melaka wins gold Green Apple - General - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/clean-sg-melaka-wins-gold-green-apple-1.309181#ixzz2YFA417oU
