Jainted Life Source Hungers for Cunes

Arkib TD 365 L416 2011

Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

I bull

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La ll Seng Water in the environment tain ted life source hungers for cures Lau Seng ISBN 978-967-54 18-1 9-8 1 Water quality mltinagement-Sarawak 2 Water qua lity-Environmental aspects-Sa rawak I Title 3637394095952

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Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

Lau Seng

Universiti Mala~ltaa Sarawak 201 1

PREFACE

T hi s bookle t is a complete roundup to [he inauguralleclure for the appointmen t o f

professorshi p at Un iversiti Ma lays ia Sa rawak The con tents a re based on papers

presented in semi nars a nd conferenees published in proceed ings and j ournals

and reports submitted for consultancy proj ec ts The con tent deal s wi th the

basic wa te r c he mi stry fo llowed by the analytica l methodologies for the aq uati c

e nvironme nt assess ments wastewate r trea tment techno logi es a nd a pproaches

a nd water resources manageme nt syste m

The studies vere conduc t on surface wa te r in Sarawak Chapter 2 deals

with the basic wale r chemi stJy and rhe common va ter qua lity parameters Ihal

were measured fo r the calculati on of the Ma laysia n Water Qua lity Index (WQ Ishy

DOE) Chapter 3 summarises the wate r qua li ty s tud ies that have been conducted

in severa l rivers a nd lakes in Sarawak 10 ga uge the overa ll s tatus of the waler

qua lity in Sarawak while the met hodologies developed for monitoring the aqua tic

e nvironment are discussed in Chapter 4 Tecbrllques app lied in the biomonlton ng

of heavy meta ls In the freshwate r environme nt de term ination o f the carrying

capac ity of a n estuary and sediment distribu tion and pol lutants monitonng were

di scussed C hapte r 5 deals wirh was tewater trea tment techn ology which include

bio filtra tion construcred we tland a nd ecological sa nitati on sys tem HighlIght

on the manageme nt o f water resources covers only the integrated wate r resource

manageme nt w ith foc us on Sg Sarawak bas in a nd this is covered in C hapte r

6 This book ends with the conc lus ions of our researc h on water che mistry

analytical methods was tewate r trea tment and wu er resource manage me nt in

Chapter 7

I hoped that the book wi ll give reade rs an ov~ rall view o f the water resources In

Sarawak and prov ides a reference ma te n a l for future s tudies in th is area

Lau Seng

v

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

I bull

FirS Pub licallon 20 II copyUN IMAS

All rights reserved No part of lhis publication may be reproduced s tored in a retrieval system or transmitted e lectronic mechanical photocopying recording

or otherwise without the prior perm ission of the Publisher

Published in Ma lays i by Uni versiti Malaysia Sarawak

94300 Kota Samara han Sarawak Ma lays ia

Printed in Malays ia by

Infografik press sdn bhd LOI 2 10 Jalan Nlpah olT Jalan Abe ll Utara

93 100 Kuehing Sarawak

Perp llslakaan Nega ra Ma laysia Cl taloguing-in-Publlcation Data

La ll Seng Water in the environment tain ted life source hungers for cures Lau Seng ISBN 978-967-54 18-1 9-8 1 Water quality mltinagement-Sarawak 2 Water qua lity-Environmental aspects-Sa rawak I Title 3637394095952

Ilica tion 20 11 lN IMAS

ubllcation may be reproduced stored in a ronjc mechanical photocopy ing recording nor penmssion of the Publ isher

m Malaysia by lalaysia Sarawak )13 Samarahan tk Malays ia

n Malays ia by

press sdn bhd lh off lalan Abell Uta a thing Sarawak

Cataloguing-in-Publ icat ion Data

d life source hungers for curesl

rawak 2 Water quali ty-EnvironmentaL

PKHIOl-1AT MAKlUMAT AKAOEMIK UNIMAS

1111111111111111111111111111 1000168896

Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

Lau Seng

Universiti Mala~ltaa Sarawak 201 1

PREFACE

T hi s bookle t is a complete roundup to [he inauguralleclure for the appointmen t o f

professorshi p at Un iversiti Ma lays ia Sa rawak The con tents a re based on papers

presented in semi nars a nd conferenees published in proceed ings and j ournals

and reports submitted for consultancy proj ec ts The con tent deal s wi th the

basic wa te r c he mi stry fo llowed by the analytica l methodologies for the aq uati c

e nvironme nt assess ments wastewate r trea tment techno logi es a nd a pproaches

a nd water resources manageme nt syste m

The studies vere conduc t on surface wa te r in Sarawak Chapter 2 deals

with the basic wale r chemi stJy and rhe common va ter qua lity parameters Ihal

were measured fo r the calculati on of the Ma laysia n Water Qua lity Index (WQ Ishy

DOE) Chapter 3 summarises the wate r qua li ty s tud ies that have been conducted

in severa l rivers a nd lakes in Sarawak 10 ga uge the overa ll s tatus of the waler

qua lity in Sarawak while the met hodologies developed for monitoring the aqua tic

e nvironment are discussed in Chapter 4 Tecbrllques app lied in the biomonlton ng

of heavy meta ls In the freshwate r environme nt de term ination o f the carrying

capac ity of a n estuary and sediment distribu tion and pol lutants monitonng were

di scussed C hapte r 5 deals wirh was tewater trea tment techn ology which include

bio filtra tion construcred we tland a nd ecological sa nitati on sys tem HighlIght

on the manageme nt o f water resources covers only the integrated wate r resource

manageme nt w ith foc us on Sg Sarawak bas in a nd this is covered in C hapte r

6 This book ends with the conc lus ions of our researc h on water che mistry

analytical methods was tewate r trea tment and wu er resource manage me nt in

Chapter 7

I hoped that the book wi ll give reade rs an ov~ rall view o f the water resources In

Sarawak and prov ides a reference ma te n a l for future s tudies in th is area

Lau Seng

v

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

FirS Pub licallon 20 II copyUN IMAS

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La ll Seng Water in the environment tain ted life source hungers for cures Lau Seng ISBN 978-967-54 18-1 9-8 1 Water quality mltinagement-Sarawak 2 Water qua lity-Environmental aspects-Sa rawak I Title 3637394095952

Ilica tion 20 11 lN IMAS

ubllcation may be reproduced stored in a ronjc mechanical photocopy ing recording nor penmssion of the Publ isher

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Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

Lau Seng

Universiti Mala~ltaa Sarawak 201 1

PREFACE

T hi s bookle t is a complete roundup to [he inauguralleclure for the appointmen t o f

professorshi p at Un iversiti Ma lays ia Sa rawak The con tents a re based on papers

presented in semi nars a nd conferenees published in proceed ings and j ournals

and reports submitted for consultancy proj ec ts The con tent deal s wi th the

basic wa te r c he mi stry fo llowed by the analytica l methodologies for the aq uati c

e nvironme nt assess ments wastewate r trea tment techno logi es a nd a pproaches

a nd water resources manageme nt syste m

The studies vere conduc t on surface wa te r in Sarawak Chapter 2 deals

with the basic wale r chemi stJy and rhe common va ter qua lity parameters Ihal

were measured fo r the calculati on of the Ma laysia n Water Qua lity Index (WQ Ishy

DOE) Chapter 3 summarises the wate r qua li ty s tud ies that have been conducted

in severa l rivers a nd lakes in Sarawak 10 ga uge the overa ll s tatus of the waler

qua lity in Sarawak while the met hodologies developed for monitoring the aqua tic

e nvironment are discussed in Chapter 4 Tecbrllques app lied in the biomonlton ng

of heavy meta ls In the freshwate r environme nt de term ination o f the carrying

capac ity of a n estuary and sediment distribu tion and pol lutants monitonng were

di scussed C hapte r 5 deals wirh was tewater trea tment techn ology which include

bio filtra tion construcred we tland a nd ecological sa nitati on sys tem HighlIght

on the manageme nt o f water resources covers only the integrated wate r resource

manageme nt w ith foc us on Sg Sarawak bas in a nd this is covered in C hapte r

6 This book ends with the conc lus ions of our researc h on water che mistry

analytical methods was tewate r trea tment and wu er resource manage me nt in

Chapter 7

I hoped that the book wi ll give reade rs an ov~ rall view o f the water resources In

Sarawak and prov ides a reference ma te n a l for future s tudies in th is area

Lau Seng

v

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

Ilica tion 20 11 lN IMAS

ubllcation may be reproduced stored in a ronjc mechanical photocopy ing recording nor penmssion of the Publ isher

m Malaysia by lalaysia Sarawak )13 Samarahan tk Malays ia

n Malays ia by

press sdn bhd lh off lalan Abell Uta a thing Sarawak

Cataloguing-in-Publ icat ion Data

d life source hungers for curesl

rawak 2 Water quali ty-EnvironmentaL

PKHIOl-1AT MAKlUMAT AKAOEMIK UNIMAS

1111111111111111111111111111 1000168896

Water in the Environment Tainted Life Source Hungers for Cures

Lau Seng

Universiti Mala~ltaa Sarawak 201 1

PREFACE

T hi s bookle t is a complete roundup to [he inauguralleclure for the appointmen t o f

professorshi p at Un iversiti Ma lays ia Sa rawak The con tents a re based on papers

presented in semi nars a nd conferenees published in proceed ings and j ournals

and reports submitted for consultancy proj ec ts The con tent deal s wi th the

basic wa te r c he mi stry fo llowed by the analytica l methodologies for the aq uati c

e nvironme nt assess ments wastewate r trea tment techno logi es a nd a pproaches

a nd water resources manageme nt syste m

The studies vere conduc t on surface wa te r in Sarawak Chapter 2 deals

with the basic wale r chemi stJy and rhe common va ter qua lity parameters Ihal

were measured fo r the calculati on of the Ma laysia n Water Qua lity Index (WQ Ishy

DOE) Chapter 3 summarises the wate r qua li ty s tud ies that have been conducted

in severa l rivers a nd lakes in Sarawak 10 ga uge the overa ll s tatus of the waler

qua lity in Sarawak while the met hodologies developed for monitoring the aqua tic

e nvironment are discussed in Chapter 4 Tecbrllques app lied in the biomonlton ng

of heavy meta ls In the freshwate r environme nt de term ination o f the carrying

capac ity of a n estuary and sediment distribu tion and pol lutants monitonng were

di scussed C hapte r 5 deals wirh was tewater trea tment techn ology which include

bio filtra tion construcred we tland a nd ecological sa nitati on sys tem HighlIght

on the manageme nt o f water resources covers only the integrated wate r resource

manageme nt w ith foc us on Sg Sarawak bas in a nd this is covered in C hapte r

6 This book ends with the conc lus ions of our researc h on water che mistry

analytical methods was tewate r trea tment and wu er resource manage me nt in

Chapter 7

I hoped that the book wi ll give reade rs an ov~ rall view o f the water resources In

Sarawak and prov ides a reference ma te n a l for future s tudies in th is area

Lau Seng

v

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

PREFACE

T hi s bookle t is a complete roundup to [he inauguralleclure for the appointmen t o f

professorshi p at Un iversiti Ma lays ia Sa rawak The con tents a re based on papers

presented in semi nars a nd conferenees published in proceed ings and j ournals

and reports submitted for consultancy proj ec ts The con tent deal s wi th the

basic wa te r c he mi stry fo llowed by the analytica l methodologies for the aq uati c

e nvironme nt assess ments wastewate r trea tment techno logi es a nd a pproaches

a nd water resources manageme nt syste m

The studies vere conduc t on surface wa te r in Sarawak Chapter 2 deals

with the basic wale r chemi stJy and rhe common va ter qua lity parameters Ihal

were measured fo r the calculati on of the Ma laysia n Water Qua lity Index (WQ Ishy

DOE) Chapter 3 summarises the wate r qua li ty s tud ies that have been conducted

in severa l rivers a nd lakes in Sarawak 10 ga uge the overa ll s tatus of the waler

qua lity in Sarawak while the met hodologies developed for monitoring the aqua tic

e nvironment are discussed in Chapter 4 Tecbrllques app lied in the biomonlton ng

of heavy meta ls In the freshwate r environme nt de term ination o f the carrying

capac ity of a n estuary and sediment distribu tion and pol lutants monitonng were

di scussed C hapte r 5 deals wirh was tewater trea tment techn ology which include

bio filtra tion construcred we tland a nd ecological sa nitati on sys tem HighlIght

on the manageme nt o f water resources covers only the integrated wate r resource

manageme nt w ith foc us on Sg Sarawak bas in a nd this is covered in C hapte r

6 This book ends with the conc lus ions of our researc h on water che mistry

analytical methods was tewate r trea tment and wu er resource manage me nt in

Chapter 7

I hoped that the book wi ll give reade rs an ov~ rall view o f the water resources In

Sarawak and prov ides a reference ma te n a l for future s tudies in th is area

Lau Seng

v

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

ACKilOWLEDGEMENTS

The research proj ec ts which were conducted durin g my employment at Uni versili

Ma laysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) were mos tly in co llaborations with my students

(BSc MSc and Ph D) my colleagues and counterpa1s at other in titutions

and reputable pro fessionals I wish ( 0 express my sincere grat itude for all their

hard works and sch olarl y contributions I am deeply indebted to all these creati ve

hard working and esteemed researchers who have assisted me during the course

of my research work s for wit hout them the output s which are evidenced here

would not have materia lised I woul d like to thank UN IMAS for giving me the

0PPol1unity to rea lise my full potential in research and for prov iding me with the

necessary suppo rts in (elms of research grants research facilities (equipments

and laborato ries) and the motivat ion In the course of my work I ha ve tra ve lled

the length and breadth of Sarawak spending nu merous nights by the ri ver

banks in the jung le and in various onghouses 1 would also like to thank my

fellow researchers and fi eld ass istants who have accompani ed me during these

trips and the people of Sarawak who have given us their cooperalion and the

accommodati on dU rin g our work

Mosl impOf1an tly I would like to thank my wife Prof Dr KasingA pun

for her palJence and encouragement th roughout my work and my children

Reening and Suet Ling who being the techno-savvy Generation V have always

been handy in the preparation of my presentatIOn slides To my mother Madam

Yee Choy Fong words ca nnot describe my gratitude for all the things she had

done for me and my family

y

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

LEOGEMENTS

dueled during my employment at Uni versiti

mostly ill collaborations wjth my students

lues and cotl nlerpa n s at other institutions

) expnss my sincere gratitude for all their

I am deepl y indebted to all these creati ve

ers who have a-s isted me during the course

tern the outputs which af e evidenced here

I like to thank UNJMAS for giving me the

I in research and for prov iding me w ith Lhe

~h grants research facilit ies (equipments

In the course of my work I have trave lled

bull spending numerous nights by the ri ver

Ionghouses I would also like to thank my

s who have accompa nied me during these

J have given us their cooperation and Ihe

to to thank my wife Prof Dr Kas ing Apun

I throughout my work and my Children

Ie lechno-savvy Generation Y ha ve always

prtsenlation sJides To my mother Madam

[be my gratitude for all the things she had

Pusat Khidmat Maklumat Akademlk UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface

Acknow ledgement

List of Tables

List of Figures

I ntroducl ion

2 Selected Water Quality Parameters

3 The Status of Water Resources in Sarawak

4 Environmental Analytical Methods Development

5 Wastewater Treatment Technologies

6 Wa ler Resources Managemenl System

7 Conclusions

Appendices

References

vii

v

v

viii

x

4

9

45

65

76

83

85

86

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3 1

Table 32

Table 33

Table 3 4

Table 35

Table 36

Table 37

Table 38

Table 39

Table 3 10

Table 3 11

Table 3 12

Table 313

Tab le 4 1

Table 42

Table 4 3

Water quality measurements of rivers at

the Kclabi t Highl and Plateau 11

Water qua lity of Batang Raja ng in 1994 16

Water quality of the project site (Batang Rajang

and Sg ibong) on 28 and 29 Jul y 2003 17

Wa ler qualit y of Batang Baram measured

on 16-18 May 2009 22

Mean wa ter quality parameters of Loaga n Sunul

Mean waler quality data for Sg Sarawak

( 16 Oct shy II Dec 1995) 24

Water quality data for Sg Maong during

low tide cond itions 27

Mean wate r quality data for Sg Tabuan sampled

on 16 Sept 1999 32

Mean water quality data for Sg Tabuan

(on 14 Dec 1999) 38 36

Wa ter qua lity Ind ices for dilTeren t seclions

of Sg Tabuan 37

Wate r quali ty of Kuch ing Wet land National

Park during hi gh tide 4 1

Water qua lity of Kuching Wetld National

Park during low tide 42

The m~an water qun li ty of Tasik BlrlJ

and Tasik Bltkajng 43

Hea vy metal contents in th e bottom sedime nts of 46

Sg Sarawak and its llibutanes

The valu~s of the pa rameters at optima l con ditions 48

Sedimentation ra les in Loagan Bu nul Lake 55

V III

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

) TABLES

uremems of ri ve rs at Table 44 Metals contents in sedimem ti ss ue

d Pl atea u II and she ll o f molluscs 57

tang Rajang in 1994 16 Table 45 Accumulali ve indices for As eu and

project site (Batang Raja ng Zn in tissue and she ll s of th e molluscs 58

28 and 29 July 2003 17 Table 46 The metal contents in the tissues and shell s

liang Baranl meas ured of freshl y collected mo llu scs and the ir

j 9 22 methanol-preserved counterpa rt s 6 1

paramctlfS of Loaga n Bunu t Tab le 47 Average increases of metal contents in

data to r Sg Sarawak the preserved samples 6 1

99 ) 24 over th eir fres h sa mples

for Sg Maong dur ing Table 48 Heavy meta ls uprake by MelTcmia

27 umbellate and Ischaemum magnum

data fo r Sg Tabun sa mpled Rendle at Bukit Youn g Gold Mine Ba u 63

32 Table 4 9 Mean As concentration in Some selected

data for Sg Tabuan plants sampled from areas around Ba u Sa rawak 63

18 36 Table 5 I The mea n treat menl capabiliti es

iCS for different sec tion s of Ecosan systems and the Malays Ian

37 Standards fo r C lass II water 73

uc hin g Wetl and Na ti ona l

de 41

~ching Well an d Na tional

Ie 42

lali ty ofTasik Biru

43

01$ in the bottom sediments of 46

lributlries

larnmeters at optimal conditions 48

bull in Loagan Buou Lake 55

111 IX

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

LIST OF FlCCRES

Flgure 3 I

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 41

Figure 42

Figure 43

Figure 5 1

Figure 54

Figure 55

Figure 56

figure 5 7

Figure 61

Figure 62

Vater sampljng p0ints at LBIP 23

Sarawak and it tributaries 26

Sg vlaong Catchment Area ~ Landusc Plan (1995) 30

Saline intrusion and salinity prat1k of Sg Saraak 44

Water sampling stations at Kuching Vedand Nationa Park 39

SWCS voltarnmograms of 5 ppb As(lJl) in

I M lei and 20 ppm 48

Schematic drawing of the sediment trap 49

Apparatus for the study ofnurrient (P04)) release 5)

Schenwtlc drawing of the iaboratory

dOvn-scaJe hiofilter 66

rreefllerge remov)~ of BOD using di rrerent

media in tbe hionlter 66

Amount of POJ_ udsorbed pef kg of meuia us a function

orlhe phospbate concentration m the wastcvlfHzr 68

Phosphate adsorption klnetlcs on limestone)

red brick and degrnded shale 69

Schemaric Oflhc grcywatcr treatnlcnt system a1

Hui Sing Garden 71

Schematic drzlving of the ECOS3fl systltn1 at

Loagan Bunut National Park Headquarter Facilities 72

Schematic hly(ut oftht bicgas plant at SMK Padawan 75

The JnSlitutonal Framework of the Vacr

Resources Management m Saravvak 78

bstitutiona Framework for IRBM Impkmcntation 81

x

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

iT OF F1Cl RlS

s at LBNP 23

n butaries 26

11 Area - Landue Plan (1995) 30

sa lini ty profi le o r Sg Sarawak 44

gtns a( KLich ing Weiland Nationa l Park 39

Ins of 5 ppb As( lIl ) in

n 48

If the sedi menl trap 49

ldy of nutrient (P043_) release 51

lf dle labora lo ry

66

of BOD us ing diffe renl

r 66

laTbed per kg of media as a funclion

lcenlra tion in the was tewater 68

Tn kinetics on linlestone

Ided shale 69

~yater treatment sys tem at

7 1

of the Ecosan sys tem al

ma l Park Headqu311er Faci lities 72

r the biogas plant al SMK Padawan 75

Ilrmwork of the Wa ter

nent in Sarawak 78

ark for IRBM Implemenlalion 81

x

INTRODUCTION

Water is an integral pan of human civilisation II is distribtlled ra ther unevenly

lttc ross the world and reg ions where water is insuffi cie nt are ca lled deserts whi le

areas where there is an over supply are call we tland s_ Areas thai SfOre wa te r are

called wa ter bod ies

T he irnpol1ance o f wa ter in sustaining li ves on eal1h needs no emphaSIS

Ho vever the fate that water went through afte r they have pe rfo rmed the ir sacred

du ties are mos tl y unknown This e ithe r due to sheer ignorance o r the ill-informed

assumpti on that water is in abundance a nd there fo re w ill a lways be th ere no

matter what happe ns He nce not much atte nt ion is g iven to the source of life

(La ll el aI 2005a 2005b)

T he above att itude is particula rl y (rue for th e Slate or Sarawak as it

receives an annua l rainfall o f more than 4500 mm With such hi gh rain fall value

it see ms unbe lievable o r unthi nkable fo r the State to have wa ter shoI111ges BU( on

the contmry inc idences o f water shortage a re common partic ularly in the remore

a nd iso lated a reas unreachable by the main wa te r d istribution pi pes The sho rtage

in wa te r supply is s trongly be lieved 10 be due to two main fac to rs fi rs tly wea the r

o r c limat ic conditio ns that provide a long period o f drought and secondly

pOll ution fac to rs that re nde r the wa ter no longer lit for huma n consumpti ons

The first fac tor (clima tlc pattem ) is eas ily verified as the Department

of Irrigations and Dra inage (DID) maintain weather s tations th rough out the

co untry Accord ing La the c urrent c limatic panern the rainfa ll pattern in Sarawak

predic ts d ry spelJ in the mo nth of March and be tween June and August where

the monthly ra in falls fo r those months are less than 300 mm The second facto r

wa ter po ll ution is noL so easy to ve ri ry It requires the monilo ring and a nalyses

of Wa ter sa mples T he re are constra ins with in the environmenta l agenc ies to

carry out these require ments and these are the lim ned man power fi nance and

tec hnica llulOw- how

Sad ly while Ihe releva nl agenc ies conlinued 10 be plagued by Ihose

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

constraints the e nvlronmenra l hea lth s tat us o fm os wale r bodies in the develop ing

count ries continue to suffer un sustainable explo itarions and mi strea tments The

num ber of po lluted ri ve rs lakes es tuaries and coas tal wa ters are Increasing The

degrada tions of the water bodies refl ec t the overall e nvi ronme nta l degradatio n

In most cases e nvironmental degrada tions seem to be c losely linked to economiC

development (Lau amp Pere ira 1998) and some groups prefer 10 believe that the

enviroJlmental degradations are necessary trade-offs in our pursuit o f mone tary

ga ins and economic prosperilies Unfortu nate ly it appears that such misjudge

ideology has bee n wide ly accepted as tme hence no publie pro tesl has been

mounted on the continLial degrada tion o f our e nvironment particularly our

water bodies The trade-oFr excuse hovever is unJustifiab le and was put

fo rward main ly to jus ll fy the unquenchable ma te rialistic desire of some groups

o f indi viduals that have in their pursu it o f monetary gain neglec ted the ir

responsibility to pro tec t the environment Bu t the fac t is through susta inable

development concept and environme ntal bes t ma nageme nt prac tices economiC

development and e nv ironme ntal health can co-exisl and complement each other

(Lau 2009) The need for sus tainable developme nt was the mai n age nda o f the

Earth Summ it in 1992 and to ach ieve its goa ls we need to ha ve s trong scie ntific

knowledge about the environmental processes

Water component o r the hydrosphere serves as a link between al the

o th er e nvironme nt al componen ts name ly the allnospi1ere lithosphe re and the

biosphere Water bodies are the trapping pool 10 all f0I1115 o f po llul ants By

deciphering the pathways by wh ich po ll utants disperse through our wa ter sys tem

we will gai n a useful ins ight to the state ofour environmenl Therefore a thorough

c hemical analysis o f the water in cn vironment is an important procedu re in the

sc ien tific inves tiga tions o r our waleI syste m (Lall 20 10)

A ll nlanmiddot rnade pollutants are chemica lly toxic to li v ing things The

presence of pollutants in the wa ter sys te m vill de li tllteiy afTec a ll aqua tic

o rganisms tho ugh the degree varies be tween t)PIS ofpoli utanlS The e Ffec ts may

range from slight irritation 10 fa tal depending on the tox icity of the pollutants

2

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

2

tllluS ofmost water bodies in the deve lopi ng

table explo itations and mis trea tments The

lries and coastal waters are increasing The

tct the overall environmenlal degrada tion

uons seem to be closely linked to economic

and some groups pre fer to be lieve that the

ssary trade-ofTs in our pursuit of moneta ry

fortunately it appears tha t such misjldge

as true he nce no public protes t has been

ion of our environme n particularly our

however is unju stifiable and was put

lchablc mate riali sti c des ire o r some groups

lursuit of monetary gain neglec ted their

lIl1ent Rut the fact is through sustainable

nlaJ best management practices economic

llb can co-exist and complemen t each other

Ie deve lopment was the ma in agenda o f the

its goals we Il cd to ha ve strong sc ien tific

processes

(drosphere serves as a li nk be tween all the

omely the atmospherc lilhosphere and the

tpping poo l 10 a ll fonns of po llutants By

~lIutnn ts di sperse through our wa ter sys tem

te o fourenvironment Therefore a thorough

ironment is an importan t procedure in the

ySlcm (Lall 20 I0)

Ire chemically lox ic 10 li vlflS Ihmss The

T system will defin ite ly a ffect all aquatic

t ccn Iypes of po llutan ls The effects may

J pending on Ihe tox ic ily of the pollutants

Some pollutants do not di rec tl y exel1 harmful effec t 011 liV ing organisms but may

cause secondary etTect which may ultima te ly lead to ntla lit y The most common

exam pleo rthis secondary e ffect is I II organ ic po lluta nts which eventua lly find their

way into he wate r syste m Pollution of th is nature may resuh in the des trucllon

o f li ving organism such as Ashes in the affec ted lakes While the pollutanfs

may not be responsible for the fataliti es its effec ts on the lake ecosys tem will

In thi s case the excess ive amount of po llutants in the water systems provides

nutrients tha t promote a lgal bl ooms The blooming alga will n OI only consume

all the oxygen in th e lake but it also blocks sunlight that is needed by submerged

aq uat ic plants to in it iate ph otosy nthesis Hence the visible co nseque nces voul d

be the death of a massive number of fi shes not from the po llutant Ise f bu t from

immine nt suffocation due to the lack o f oxygen in the wale r Mos t of the acutc

effec ts o f po llutants suc h as the aforemen tioned are easi ly vis ible No doubt

these incidences attract great public in te rest and c rea te media impacts The re fore

anenlions are gi ven qlllte immedi atel y a nd s ituarions restored at least to the eyes

of the media and the public But without prope r pla nn ing and s trategy In place

s imilar incidences may recur in (he future

The science o f environ me ula l po llut ion has recentl y receive much

allenllo n for rhe s im ple fact that It can ex plain the occurrences o f po llutions

provide recomme ndations on trea tme nt a nd manageme nt syste ms and make

fo rec[lst of future e nvironme ntal sta tus The ma in objec ti ve of thi s text is to

provide some sc ienlific observat ions analyses trea tment techno log ies and

management sys tems for the -va te r resources n Sa rawak It wi ll de lve Into four

maj n topics which a re

i) the s lalu5 of the qualily of ater resou rces in Sara wa k

i i) (h e developme nl of alterna ti ve analytical procedures In

environmental ana lyses

ii i) water and was tewater trea tme nt tec hn ologies and

iv) wa ter resources ma nagement in Sarawa k

3

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

2 SELECT ED WATER Q UALITY PARAMETERS

The quality of surface wa ter In Mal ays ia is measured by the Water Quali ty Index

(WQ I) set by the Department of En vironment Ma laysia The WQI is calcu la ted

fr om six wate r qualify parameters pH Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxyge n Demand (BOD) Chemica l Oxygen Demand (COD) Tota l Suspended

Solids (TSS) and Ammoniaca l Nit roge n (N HN) The s ign ifica nce of eac h

para me te r is desc ribed below (Lau 1992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

DEGREE Of ALKALINITY OR ACIDITY (pH)

This para mete r measures theconcentra tion ofhyd rogen IOns in wa ter It repre~ents

the nega ti ve value of the loga nthm of the concentra tion of hydrogen ions (H)

Mathematical ly it is ex pressed as

pH ~ 10g[H]

Based on the dissoc iati on constant of water K = [Hj[OH] = 14 a t neutral

condi tion the pH is 7 A11 pH that are less (han 7 denotes acidic environment

while pH of more tha n 7 denotes alka line In natural cond itions the pH ofwaler

is between 6 and 8 Slight acidic water is mainly due La d issolved carhon dioxide

from rhe atmosphe re whi le a slight a lkaline condition is mai nly due to the

presence o f ca lcium c8 rbonate ( limestone) I n some exceptiona l cond itio ns such

as in peat areas wate r pH ca n go as low as 4 due to th e re lease of humic acids

from Ihe decay i ng woody mater ial in the pea l (Lau er al 1994)

When the pH of a wate r body is el) ac id ic (pH lt4) or very a lka line

(pHgt 9) they normally indicate the presence of Industria l dIscharges or acid

m ine di scharges Unde r both ac idic or a J ka li n~ cond itions aq uatic life will be

adversely a ffec ted and may eve ntually lead 10 their destruc tion

DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)

DO is extremely important in supporting aquatic life Atmospheric oxygen

4

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

4

~ QUALITY PARAMETERS

Is in is measured by the Water Quality Index

lfomnent Malays ia The WQI is calculated

H Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Biochemical

Oxygen Demand (COD) TOlal Suspended

Irogen (NHmiddotN) The signi fica nce of each

992 Lau amp Murtedza 2000)

~CIDITY (pH)

mtion ofhydrogen ions in water 1 t represents

of the concenlralion of hydrogen ions (H )

of water Kbull - [H][OH-j = 14 at neulrdl

3rc less than 7 denotes acidic env ironment

aline In natura l condit ions the pH of water

lef is mainly due to dissolved ca rbon diox ide

hi alkaline condition is ma inly due to the

stone) In some exceptional conditi ons such

S low as 4 due to the reJease of hu mic acids

the peat (Lau el aI 1994)

lody is very acid ic (pH lt4) or very alkaline

e presence of industrial discharges Or ac id

- or alka li ne conditions aquatic li fe wl il be

Jly lead to their destruction

pport ing aquatic li fe Atmospheric oxygen

Pusat Khidm a t Ma kluma t Aka demik UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SARAWAK

dissolved in sur face wa te r so that aerob ic aquatic orga nism could breathe In the

oxygen molecules some th rough their gills while others through diffusion acrOSS

the sk in The solubility ofoxygen in wa fer is 84 mglL at 20 C This solubility is

somewhat in versely propoI1 ional 1O temperature At higher temperature such as

the temperature of tropical surface water (28 - 30 OC) the solu bility of oxygen

s app rox imately 7 - 75 mgL The so lu bi lity of oxygen IS al so dependent on its

diffus ion rate and tbis ca n be enhanced by turbulence There fore a swift fl ow ing

river will have higher DO dlle to the continuous mixin g of oxygen and water

while a stagnant pond will have lower DO Oo ygen producing aquatic plants

(such as algae) will increase the DO of the wale r body during Ihe day when

they photosynthcsise but will COIl)ume th e DO at night du ring their respiration

Other oxygen consum ing sub stances include orga nic matlers whi lt h orig inate

from decaYi ng vegeta ll ve debris food wastes and sewages (Lall et aI 2000a)

BIOCH EMICAL OXYGE N DEMAND (BOD)

When organic maners either dissol ed or slispe nded are present jn water bodj~

natural existing microorganisms will consume them th ruugh a bioc hem ica l

process Thi s process is Call ed decomposit ion or bi odegradat ion 1n most natu ra l

processes the biodegradation occu r in the presence of oxygen by aerobic

mi croorgani sms When microorganisms break down the organic matters oxygen

is consumed ~nd carbon dioxide is released The amount of oxygen consumed

in this process is kn o n as BOD Therefore this is an indirec t measure of th e

amoun t of orga nic ma tter In the water body BO D is measured over a fi ve (5)

day period at 20QC and it refers to the amoun t of oxygen consumed per liter of

the water sample 1n natural conditions BOD comes from decaying vege la ti v~

debris and the va lues are less lhan 2 mglL

The ma in sources of BOD are from anim al waste agricultural wastes

(palm o il mill effi uent) sewage food wastes and a balt oJf~ wastes (Lau 2002a)

The significance o f thi s parameter is tha t when BOD IS high DO in the wa ter

sam pl e will be depleted and thi s wil l eventultJlly sLdTocare all aquatic li ft

5

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

CHEM ICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (COD)

Thi s parameter is s imilar to that of BOD However COD measures the amounl

of organic matters th at are chemically oxidisable This measure ment can be done

by reAuxing waler sample with chromic ac id as the ox idant at 120 degC for two

hours COD is useful in monitoring industrial di scharges where some of the

organic wastes are not eas il y degraded by mIcroorganisms

In natura l unpolluted cond itions COD is nomlally less than 20 mgIL

The presence of chlor id e (C n and some meta l ions such as iron (11) (Fe ) can

in terfere with the measurement o f COD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) T herefore in

samples with chloride o r iron ions additional steps are required to firs t remove

the in terfering ions before measurement c f CcD is conducted

TOTAL SUS PENDE D SOLIDS (TSS)

In regions where the mea n annua l ra infall is more than 3500 mm soil e ros ion

by surface runoff is rampan t The ex te nt of so il e rosion is amplified when some

la nd use acti vities (dc[oresiati on large sca le pla ntation road constructions

and mining) remove (he ground covers and thus expos ing the so il (Lau et a I

2005c) Surface runo ffs will Ihe n ca rty wllh them the loose soi l particles (sand

s ilt and clay) as they make Ihe ir way into the ri vers The eventual effec t is a rive r

water thar appea rs turbid (ye ll ow ish and muddy) and no longer transpa re nt By

measuring the amounl of suspended soil particles in the wa ter il is possible to

estimate Ihe degree of soil e rosion from Ihe catch me nt Suspe nded solids are

fou nd 10 be a n effec ti ve remover of dissolved hea vy metals (Lau amp Chu ng

1997) Fi ne r particles have a higher capacity and efficie ncy in adsorbi ng calio ns

Also the adsorption of heavy meta ls by suspended solids is effect ive at pH as

low as 4

In tenns o f wa ter qualit y the presence of high amount o f suspended

solids w ill increase turbid ity preventi ng sunlight fro m penet rating deeper into a

wate r body to support photosynthesis of aqua tic plant When the suspended sol ids

6

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

6

) (COD)

300 However COD measures the amount

oxidisable T his measurement ca n be done

lmic ac id as the oxida nt a l 120 degC for two

industria l d ischarges where some of the

ed by microorganisms

lions COD is norma lly less h an 20 mglL

orne metal ions slich as iron (II ) (Fe raquo can

OD (Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Therefore In

additional steps are required to first remove

lent of COD is conduced

)

amfa ll is more than 3500 Olm soil eros ion

ncnt o r50i l erosion is amplified when some

large scale pla ntat ion road constructions

ers and thus ex pos ing tbe so il (Lau et al

trry with them the loose so il parti c les (sand

into the rivers The eventua l effec t is a ri ve r

and muddy) and no longer transparent By

j soU particles in the water it is possible to

from the ca tchmen Suspended so lids are

o f dissolved heavy me tals (Lau amp Chung

capacity a nd efficiency In adsorbing ca tio ns

Is by suspended solids is e ffec ti ve a pH as

tho presence of high mollnt of suspe nded

Hing sunlight from penetrating deeper into a

s ofaquatic p lan t When the suspe nded so lids

se tt le into the river bed i l will cover and bu ry mOSI oflhe benthic orgltlI1ISmi and

destroy the spawning grounds offi sh and fi sh eggs Smaller partl Llc~ 111 the v aler

body will c log be gi ll s o f fi shes and sufloeate hem There rare the TSS aluc o f

a WcHef body indicates the degree o f 5011 erosion fo r Lha( Lmiddotl tchment as well as Ih~

hea hh of the aquatic habitats In the wa ter body

AMMON IACAL NITROGEN (NH-1)

All orgltln lC malleIS that origllllJ lc from li ving organisms contain prol ~in The

backbone of protein are amino acids that co ntaIn nit rogen The fir st stage f

decompos ition in volves (he brea kdovn of am ino ac id s by bacter ia a proc~s

that releases ammo ni a (N HJ As th e ammonia molec ules build up l1ifrO~OmOl1as

bac teria will converl them to nitrite (NO ) whi lt h will th~1l bl con~nIJ ttl

the stable nitrate (NO) by the l1r1roiJacler bacte riltl ThL en tire process of

decomposing protein unt il it becomes nitrate Wi ll take about 30 to 50 days

In the Il il turnl environment Ihe sources of NH are trom vcge H ICJ

debris Il nd animal wastes and carcasses Tbe normal COllcenlrullon of NH1-N In

natt 1 wate r is less than 03 mglL (Lau et a I 2005a Lall e t a i 2006b) Whn

a nthropo~en ic infiutll ces are prcse nt th e sources of NH-N are frolll unl reated

seVvagc di scharges anima l vastes discharges and food and kitchen wastes

The detec llon of higher than 03 mgL of NH~-N in a -va ter body lIldic atts th ~

presence of fnsh ly (w ith in one veek) discharged organic a) tcs (sewage fresh

aquaculture wastes food wastes e tc )

OTHER COMMONLY MEASURED RAMIT E RS

Other commo nly measured r aramcters Include temperature willth

IS for determin ing the potential of therma l poll ution liom indulrial cooling

ta ter discharges Electrica l conducti vi ty Illay also be measured lO detenl1lnt

the amount or dissolved iOlls Such ions mos tly come Ih)m inorganic m1lcrials

(geolog ic materials - roc ks and mi nral) Also industrial was te~ hlCh

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

norm a lly conta ini ng metal ions can increase the e lectri ca l conductiv ity ofwa ler

Elec trical conductiv ity is also associated with the Total Dissolved Solids and

sa linity

Measurements o f nutr ients sllc h as nitrmes (NO)) and phosphates

(PO -) are a lso made to detect the re lease of fert ilisers from agric ult ure fi e lds

a nd es timate the pote ntial o f eutrophication o f the water body_ all the other

hand measurementS of coliform bacleria a re indica ti ve parameler fo r sewage

contamination in particu lar the measurement o f lhe E coli bacte ria o r the feacal

colifo rm

In addillon heavy melals such as lead (Pb) chromiu m (Cr) cadmium

(Cd) coppa (Cu) mercury (Hg) ni ckel (N i) and zinc (Zn) are someti me

measured to trace the discharges from e lectron ic rmd plating ind ustr ies millc

tailings and batleries manufacturing Most of these heavy meta ls are very toxi c

to human health A lso dete rm ina ti on of pestic ides in water bod ies is done soleI)

fo r investigative a nd cOlllp li t1l1ce purposes a nd is targeted at the ag riculture

sector (plantations) The mai n concem is leach ing of pes tiCIdes from farms in to

ri vers Pcs ticides are commonly grouped unde r the o rganochlorinc (OC) and

the organophosphorus (O P) group~ and the analy ical melhods for pestiCIdes

determination a re mos tly very labourious and rime consuming (L-1U el a I 2005d

Chai amp Lau 2003a 2003b)

8

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

8

increasl thl declr ical conduc tivity o f wa ter

elaled wi lh Ihe TOlal Dissolved Solids and

such as nilrales (NO) a nd phosphales

release o f fe rtili sers fro ln agricultu re fi elds

gtpiticali on o f the wa le r body O n Ihe olhe r

actcri a a re indica ti ve para mete r for sevage

LHlremenl of the E colt bac ter ia or the feacal

slich as lead (Pb) chrol11lUm (C r) cadmium

nickel (Ni) and zi nc (Zn) are someti me

Tom elec tronic and plaling industri es mine

g Most of these heavy metals are very tox ic

I[J of pes ticides in water bodies is done solel y

purposes and is targeted al the ag ricultu re

em is leaching of pesticides fw m farms in to

lUuped under Ihe organocbl orine (Oe) and

and the analytica l methods for pes lic ides

IdollS and time consuming (La u et aI 2005d

3 THE STATUS OF WATER RESO URCES IN SARAWAK

Sarawak with ils vast land area and high annua l ra infa ll is undoubtedly the s lale

with Ihe larges t wa le r resources a nd reserves Almost a ll Ihe bullvater supply in

Sarawa k is abstracted from sur face wa te r exce pt in Miri whe re groundwa te r

is also abs trac ted to supple me nt surface waler Due (Q the hea vy dependence on

sur face water a nd the consta nt Cha nges in th e la ndsca pe of lhe sta te the usab ili ty

o f surface Vate r has bee n grea tly a ITected O ur eva lua tion o f the water qua lity III

various ri ve rs in Sara wa k has helped to take stock of the c lea nlmess sta tu s oflhc

rive rs in Sa rawak Those in vest iga ti ons were conducted from 1993 (02010

SAM UNSAM WILDLIFE SAN C T UARY

Al Ihe Westem lip o f Sa rawak lays Ihe Sa munsat Wild life Sanc tuary The

sanctuary cove rs a bout 6 1 km 2 o f Gunung Pueh Forest Reserve and stretc hes

from the Indonesia n border in the west 10 Ihe sUite s coast in the east The

Samunsa m Ri ver drains the catchme nt T he tri butary of Samunsa m Ri ver are

Sg Assa m w hIc h is loca ted oUlside the Sanc tua rys boundary and Sg Sa mllnsam

BU la Merah which is within the sa nctuary Part of the Sam unsam ca tchment is

no t within the na tio na l park IS the re fore subj ec ted [0 rhe Impac ts of olher la nd

uses

An ecological s tudy of Sam un sam Ri ver Basin was conducted to assess

the stale o f Its ecosys tem inc luding the wat er q ua lity of the Samunsam Ri ver

(Lau e l al 1994) In lhe study a total o f 16 sampling pOlnls we re se lec led The

lower pa rts o flhe ri ver were saline (abo u 13 of the ri ve r le ngth ) T he re main ing

ri ve r stre tc hes we re quite low in the ir conductivity (23 - 58 pScm) The pH o f

the fi ve r a lso fo llowed the pa tt ern of the sa lmily The lower reaches of the ri ve r

where the sa lini ty was hi gh had pH between 662 and 720 The o the r reaches or

the river had pH be twee n 4 13 a nd 5 13 The ri ve r wa le r was aCid ic and that as

due to peat deposition in a large pa rt of the ca tch me nt

T he wate r DO 1evel s were con~ i ste nt ly between 36 a nd 4 1 mg L The

9

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

ri ver vas 510 fl owing and contained high amount of organic ma tters in the fonn

of humic ac ids from the peat leachares The organic malte r in the process o f their

oX Idation consuJ11~d oxygen in the water and because o f the ri ver slov fl ow the

aerati on rate was also slow Hence the DO m~nS llremcnts were we ll b~low the

normal le vel o f betwee n 5 and 6 mgL

The sludy did nor measure other wrl ler qualit y parameters II W(lS

concluded thai there (IS nO pollut ion fro m anthropogcl1lc acti vi ties within

the Wildl ife Sa nctuary However some logging actiVities Vere observed at

Gu nung Pueh during the study and there was Indicnti on of soil eroSion T bi s wa s

v i s ibl~ from the llluddy water at Sg Assam Amiddot hich turned brownish as It ftowed

downstrea m middothere it mIxed with pea l wa ler Organic matter from the pea t was

responsIb le for consuming part o frhe disso lved OXYb lll

The study also concluded that Sa mullsam River is acid Ic due to peat

d isc harges Vegetative debr is from herbaceous pla nts in add ition to Ihl prtse nce

o f peat wnter contri buted to the organic mat rer content in the water vhl ch

Increased oxygen dema nd and cau sed Ihe DO leve l to be lower than averag~

The ri ver was also s lighll y polluted by sod erosion

THE KfLABfT HIGHLAND (Lau ef aI 1995 1997)

A muludi scip limll) exped ition was cOllducted at the Kelabil Highland of Bario

from 10 - 20 Apnl 1995 Ban o Asal is the main selilemenl ol the Ke lab ll Jt is

loca ted at the plateau abo ut 1200 III as 1 w ith an annual rainfall o f 2300 mm

T he nean dally temperature of tIlls area fall s between 19 =tnd 21 c The Kelabil

Hi ghland Plateau form s the uppermost catc hment 0 Baram Ri ver BaS in T hl

Platea u is dra ined by IwO m311l rie rs Pa Marario and its tribu taries And I)alan

Pa Lap and Pa Ramapoh and Pa Uka t BOlh lhes~ rivers and IIH ir Iributaries

drai n IIll0 Sg Dappur which d rltlll1s into Batang 13arl m

During th~ expedi tion water qua lity lUdy WiiS cOlJducted on the Pa

Marario and It5 tributanes and Oil Pa Ukal A sitmple was also taken from Sg

Dappur Resu ll s orille measurements are shown in l abk 31 Thl hlghll nd has a

10

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

d high amnunl of urgalllt matters in the rorm

es TIll o~anic matter in tbe process oftilei r

ater and because oftlc r l~ r ~Jow Aow the

me DO measurements were cll belomiddot the

rL

Ire mhl r Ilc r Lj unlit) pJrameters It was

UtIOt1 from (l ntbropogenic act Ivities within

some lugging activities were observed at

here was mdication of so il eros ion Thi s was

~ Assam which turned browni sh as it Howed

eat ~(llmiddotr Organic matter from the peat as

~e dissolved oxygell

that Snmull sam Ri ver is ac idic due to peat

lerbnc ous plants in addition to the presence

l1rganic mal ler content in the waleI which

sed the DO level to be lower Ihan average

by 5011 erosion

IU I (II 1995a 1997)

OIUUCloO at the Kelabit Hi2h lond or Borio

al is the ma lll s ett1eIl1~llt or IhI Kelab il It IS

rn n $1 with an annual ra infa ll of 2300 mill

urea fulls betwee n III und 22 c The Kd bi t

nf)st cuchment of Baram RI ver Bas in The

~ Pa Marario and its tributaries AnJl Dalan

lkaL Both these ri ~rs and their tn butaries

Into Bo ng Bararn

ll~r qUJhty stud y was conducted on the Pa

Pa Ukm A sample vas also trl ken from Sg

ts tlre shOJ1 in Table 31 The highland has a

IU

relati vely cool temperature ofnbout lOoe The relative) low ahr 1I11Iltmturl

di5sohcd more oxyge n and this is rcnl~ted in the DO n1iJSlIJt llIcnb all

m~auremenls were nbove 660 m gL Also another ractor that contributes to

the high DO values IS the swil1 Rowing wflttr In most or the ri ve rs The now in

the three ri vers Pa Ukat Pa Puak il nd Sg Dappuf ve re less sw ift comparmiddottI to

Pa Ml ra ri o Pa Ramapoh and And Da lan There we re s llb~ tantial amou nt or

di sso lved ions lil the middotmiddota ter all oflhe rivers glVl nIlli ve ly highe r villue in thtir

electrica l co nductivity (82 middot 133 pSc l11) compared to $0111lt orthe tropical rl crs

in Saravuk where the co ndu ctivit ies were margin aliy love r laquo 60 ~ S r ( n1 J

The appeara nce o f turbidIty indlca led tile amount of sll spe nded so lid s In

the vmiddotaler In the study turbidity leve l ca n be di vided into lhree gro ups namel y

clea r moderately turbid and hi gh ly turbId The Pa Rarnupoh Arul Dalan and Pa

Puak had clear wri ter Pa 1arano and Pa Uka t were moderately turbid while

Sg Darpur was highl y [l]rbld The main cause or lurbidily was soil erOSH n and

the assoc iated land uses or timber harvesting and land cleari ng lo r griruhurlt

The lurbidity va lues were further supported by the tota l suspended solids (TSS)

measurements The clear nvers recorded TSS of less th an 40 mg L whi le Ih

mode rate tmbidity river had their ISS rangi ng be tween 40 mgL to 96 mg L The

hi gh ly turbid river reco rd ed TSS va lue 01260 mg L

Table 3 1 oVateI quality measurement s ofthl rivtr at Kelabit Highland PlH LIU

(Lau er of 1995a)

S~ lIIplil1 S irtii on I nll Pol I PaPuak Sc

1111 Cond (IIS tm)

l111rri o

Ramapflh

I

n ltlm

Il l

I n

I I ~

Oappur

1 1

Turbidi ty f~TU) 01 0 m 1010

DO (mgll gt l - 1shy 1(1 7 110(11 Tl llIlJcrlllurc ( ( ) ~(j 10 _III ~()-

1I rI( m W I ) O lIl IJIl I I 1 11- ( --shy

0 ( IIl WL1

10 ( m Ll

TSS (mw1)

BOD ClnglL)

11

U Ut

11111

11

n

nl III

I 1

I

111

I

1

II

The nutrie nt levels in the ri ve rs were re latively low with mos t of (he m at the

nalura l leve l The ammoniacal n itrogen (N H1middotN) measureme nt which is a

measure of lile firs t step of pro te lll decompos ition were from 003 to 022 mglL

Pa Ukat registered the highes t level o f N HN and this could be due to sewage

discharges from the longhouse Sg Dappur recorded 0 17 mg L ofNH-N a nd the

ma in source for this may have came from a nimal waste particu larly bu ffa los as

the re was bu ITa lo ra nch at the v ic inity ofSg Dappur sampling point Phosphates

(PO) measurements were low a nd that indicated the use of minima l amount of

mineral fe rtili ser In the agriculture practices at Ba rio

The overall wate r q uality of Bano ca lc hment appeared to be re la ti vdy

good and could be grouped under C lass II Rive rs The main po llu ta nts were

suspended solIds v hic h carne from soil erosions due to land c lea ri ng and tImber

harves ting The ca tchme nt was under th rea t as timber concess ions have been

g Iven in areas within the Ke labit High la nd Platea u It was recom mend ed Iha l

the Ke lab it Highla nd be made a conservat ion area to conserve its unlqne na tural

he ritage

TilE BATANG RAJA G (Ekra n_ 1995 Hash im amp NEH 2003)

In the ea rl y 19905 the cons truction of one o f the world larges t dams (Bakun

DROl) Vas proposed across Batang Balui the upper reac hes o f Batang Rajang

An e nvironmental impact assessmen t study was conducted and was led by the

Centre of Techno logy Trans fer and Consul tancy VN IMA S That gave us the

o pportunity to conduc t a backgrou nd s tudy and to de termine the status o f the

wa ter quality of Barang Rajang

Water Quality S tudy

The study was conducted d uring the dry (J uly 1994) and the we t (Nov 1994)

sea50ns (Ekran 1995) llle study was divided In to two sec tions rhe ups tream

and the dow ns tream or lhc proposed dams T he results of lhe slud y are shown in

Table 32 and are summarised in the foll owing headm gs

12

12

n relative ly low with most of them at the

tragon (NH N) measuremen which is a

ocomposii on were from 003 to 022 mglL

I ofN H-l and this could be due 10 sewage

)appurrecorded 017 mglLof NHJ- N and the

~ from anima l was te particularly bufTalos as

ty o f Sg Dappur sampli ng point Phosphates

tha t indica ted the LIse o f min imal amount of

)ractices at Bario

jf flario ca tchmen t appeared to be relatively

C lass II Rivers The main pollutants were

IIoi l erosions due to land c lear ing and timbe r

der threat as timbe r concessions have been

lighland Plateau It was recommended ha

~3ervati on area to conserve its unique natu ral

1995 Hashim amp NEH 2003)

1 o r one of the world largest dams (Ba kun

Ba lui the upper reaches of Batang Rajang

nl study was condu cted and was led by the

I Consu ltancy UNfMAS Tha gave us the

1d study and to determine the s latus of the

c dry (J uly 1994) and the we (Nov 1994)

as di vided into two secti ons the ups tream

dams The resuirs of the s tud y a re shown in

la llowing headings

pH

The upstrea m of the Bakun Dam was genera lly ne utral w ith pH ranging from

733 to 790 during he dry season T he pH decreased to between 6 and 693

during the earl y part o f he rainy season (Nov 1994) The recorded pH re ft ects

the typica l conditions of lropiltal fast flow ing s treams such as the Batang Balui

In the early stages o r the rai ny seasons aCid produced by the decaying vegetative

debris in the fo rest Aoor IS washed down into the ri ve r ThaI managed to dec rease

the pH reading by 1 unit which re fers 10 a 10 times inc rease o f hydrogen ion~

(W) n he waer

Conducfivity

The wate r in Batang Balui and Sg Murtlm (upstream of Bak un Darn) had low

conduc ti vity laquo 50 ~t Scm) during the d ry season and were even lower in the

rainy season laquo25 JlScm) The va lues indica ted low dissolved solids

Tllrbidity and Slispended Soids

Batang Balui and Sg Murum at the ups tream of the Bakun Dam vere s light ly

turbid duri ng he dry season urbidiy be teen 20 and 46 NT U and TSS beween

J 70 and 299 mglL Their tribuarles such as Sg Baha u Sg Linau and Sg Buko

were re la ti ve ly c lea r with turbidity in the ra nge of 3 10 II NTU However the

rive rs were heavily laden with suspe nded ~ olid s during the rainy season Our

analyses showed that in November 1994 the turb idities were between 288 and 442

NT U and hese conespond to TSS of be tween 460 and 1009 mgL The findings

indica ted that the catchment area has been hea vil y dis turbed mainly through

logging activi ties ( Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Dow nstream from he dam Belaga

to Sibu turbidity rc middot ined cons isten tly above 260 NTU but TSS measurements

s tayed between 583 and 763 rnglL dUTIng the rainy season The reduc tion In the

TSS but not Illfbidity was due to the depOSition of coarser parti c les (such as sand)

whi le the nner parti cles (that callses turbidity) reulaiued suspended

J3

Oisolled Oxygen (~O)

Th upstream region recorded DO va lues between 7 and 9 mgL That level was

achievable due to the ri ver sw ift Row and frequent formation o f rapids These

provided nalural mechanica l aeration Ihal gave the high DO leve l As the ri ver

mQed downstrea m the fl o became slower and fewer rapids formed These

Irin~l ated in to tower recorded DO va lues from 8 ehiga to Sibu betwee n 5 4 and

59 mglL Neve rthek~~ the level s art still co ns id ered good and ideal for aqua ti c

organims (Lall amp Murledza 2000)

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

The BOD urlhe upstream V3S mea sllr~d 10 be between 045 and 200 mglL The

va lues indlcJted a good and normal water quailty The BOD for the downstream

sect ioll however was slJghtl y higher between 12 and 23 mg L That could be

due to the discharges of unlrealed sewage Crom senlel1lents along the ri ver frolll

Belaga to SIbIl

Chemical oxygen demand (COD)

The COD IS s imilar (0 BOD except (ha l CO D IS a chemica ll y induced oxidation

of orga nic llIatters In 2 hr It also breaks down some nonmiddotblOdegradable materials

The upSlrta m va lues were between 2 and 19 mglL dur ing the dry season Duri ng

lhe wel season the COD va lu es increased to between 90 and 1i l mglL The

vegew tl vt dcbri ~ which was washed dov n by th e ~lrrace rUllotTs was the main

reason for the increase in COD Dow nstream strelches ofBatmg Rajang record ed

COD va lues bel ween 20 and 40 I1lg L vl lh Sibu and Kapil bcingon the high side

hieh might h~ due to the numerous num bers of boars l ra clhng and dock ing a l

these two towns spilling so me amount o f fuels However the va lues reco rded

were not Critical and was not conS idered polluting

Nutrients (NII- NO I middot POj)

The nulnnts k b In Ihe river were low with most ofth l )pmiddotcics belo or ba rely

14

12

n relative ly low with most of them at the

tragon (NH N) measuremen which is a

ocomposii on were from 003 to 022 mglL

I ofN H-l and this could be due 10 sewage

)appurrecorded 017 mglLof NHJ- N and the

~ from anima l was te particularly bufTalos as

ty o f Sg Dappur sampli ng point Phosphates

tha t indica ted the LIse o f min imal amount of

)ractices at Bario

jf flario ca tchmen t appeared to be relatively

C lass II Rivers The main pollutants were

IIoi l erosions due to land c lear ing and timbe r

der threat as timbe r concessions have been

lighland Plateau It was recommended ha

~3ervati on area to conserve its unique natu ral

1995 Hashim amp NEH 2003)

1 o r one of the world largest dams (Ba kun

Ba lui the upper reaches of Batang Rajang

nl study was condu cted and was led by the

I Consu ltancy UNfMAS Tha gave us the

1d study and to determine the s latus of the

c dry (J uly 1994) and the we (Nov 1994)

as di vided into two secti ons the ups tream

dams The resuirs of the s tud y a re shown in

la llowing headings

pH

The upstrea m of the Bakun Dam was genera lly ne utral w ith pH ranging from

733 to 790 during he dry season T he pH decreased to between 6 and 693

during the earl y part o f he rainy season (Nov 1994) The recorded pH re ft ects

the typica l conditions of lropiltal fast flow ing s treams such as the Batang Balui

In the early stages o r the rai ny seasons aCid produced by the decaying vegetative

debris in the fo rest Aoor IS washed down into the ri ve r ThaI managed to dec rease

the pH reading by 1 unit which re fers 10 a 10 times inc rease o f hydrogen ion~

(W) n he waer

Conducfivity

The wate r in Batang Balui and Sg Murtlm (upstream of Bak un Darn) had low

conduc ti vity laquo 50 ~t Scm) during the d ry season and were even lower in the

rainy season laquo25 JlScm) The va lues indica ted low dissolved solids

Tllrbidity and Slispended Soids

Batang Balui and Sg Murum at the ups tream of the Bakun Dam vere s light ly

turbid duri ng he dry season urbidiy be teen 20 and 46 NT U and TSS beween

J 70 and 299 mglL Their tribuarles such as Sg Baha u Sg Linau and Sg Buko

were re la ti ve ly c lea r with turbidity in the ra nge of 3 10 II NTU However the

rive rs were heavily laden with suspe nded ~ olid s during the rainy season Our

analyses showed that in November 1994 the turb idities were between 288 and 442

NT U and hese conespond to TSS of be tween 460 and 1009 mgL The findings

indica ted that the catchment area has been hea vil y dis turbed mainly through

logging activi ties ( Lau amp Murtedza 2000) Dow nstream from he dam Belaga

to Sibu turbidity rc middot ined cons isten tly above 260 NTU but TSS measurements

s tayed between 583 and 763 rnglL dUTIng the rainy season The reduc tion In the

TSS but not Illfbidity was due to the depOSition of coarser parti c les (such as sand)

whi le the nner parti cles (that callses turbidity) reulaiued suspended

J3

Oisolled Oxygen (~O)

Th upstream region recorded DO va lues between 7 and 9 mgL That level was

achievable due to the ri ver sw ift Row and frequent formation o f rapids These

provided nalural mechanica l aeration Ihal gave the high DO leve l As the ri ver

mQed downstrea m the fl o became slower and fewer rapids formed These

Irin~l ated in to tower recorded DO va lues from 8 ehiga to Sibu betwee n 5 4 and

59 mglL Neve rthek~~ the level s art still co ns id ered good and ideal for aqua ti c

organims (Lall amp Murledza 2000)

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

The BOD urlhe upstream V3S mea sllr~d 10 be between 045 and 200 mglL The

va lues indlcJted a good and normal water quailty The BOD for the downstream

sect ioll however was slJghtl y higher between 12 and 23 mg L That could be

due to the discharges of unlrealed sewage Crom senlel1lents along the ri ver frolll

Belaga to SIbIl

Chemical oxygen demand (COD)

The COD IS s imilar (0 BOD except (ha l CO D IS a chemica ll y induced oxidation

of orga nic llIatters In 2 hr It also breaks down some nonmiddotblOdegradable materials

The upSlrta m va lues were between 2 and 19 mglL dur ing the dry season Duri ng

lhe wel season the COD va lu es increased to between 90 and 1i l mglL The

vegew tl vt dcbri ~ which was washed dov n by th e ~lrrace rUllotTs was the main

reason for the increase in COD Dow nstream strelches ofBatmg Rajang record ed

COD va lues bel ween 20 and 40 I1lg L vl lh Sibu and Kapil bcingon the high side

hieh might h~ due to the numerous num bers of boars l ra clhng and dock ing a l

these two towns spilling so me amount o f fuels However the va lues reco rded

were not Critical and was not conS idered polluting

Nutrients (NII- NO I middot POj)

The nulnnts k b In Ihe river were low with most ofth l )pmiddotcics belo or ba rely

14

Oisolled Oxygen (~O)

Th upstream region recorded DO va lues between 7 and 9 mgL That level was

achievable due to the ri ver sw ift Row and frequent formation o f rapids These

provided nalural mechanica l aeration Ihal gave the high DO leve l As the ri ver

mQed downstrea m the fl o became slower and fewer rapids formed These

Irin~l ated in to tower recorded DO va lues from 8 ehiga to Sibu betwee n 5 4 and

59 mglL Neve rthek~~ the level s art still co ns id ered good and ideal for aqua ti c

organims (Lall amp Murledza 2000)

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

The BOD urlhe upstream V3S mea sllr~d 10 be between 045 and 200 mglL The

va lues indlcJted a good and normal water quailty The BOD for the downstream

sect ioll however was slJghtl y higher between 12 and 23 mg L That could be

due to the discharges of unlrealed sewage Crom senlel1lents along the ri ver frolll

Belaga to SIbIl

Chemical oxygen demand (COD)

The COD IS s imilar (0 BOD except (ha l CO D IS a chemica ll y induced oxidation

of orga nic llIatters In 2 hr It also breaks down some nonmiddotblOdegradable materials

The upSlrta m va lues were between 2 and 19 mglL dur ing the dry season Duri ng

lhe wel season the COD va lu es increased to between 90 and 1i l mglL The

vegew tl vt dcbri ~ which was washed dov n by th e ~lrrace rUllotTs was the main

reason for the increase in COD Dow nstream strelches ofBatmg Rajang record ed

COD va lues bel ween 20 and 40 I1lg L vl lh Sibu and Kapil bcingon the high side

hieh might h~ due to the numerous num bers of boars l ra clhng and dock ing a l

these two towns spilling so me amount o f fuels However the va lues reco rded

were not Critical and was not conS idered polluting

Nutrients (NII- NO I middot POj)

The nulnnts k b In Ihe river were low with most ofth l )pmiddotcics belo or ba rely

14