Tyre dealers have to pay for disposal

City Hall may li the ban on the disposal of used tyres at Kayu Madang landfill but with a certain amount of fee imposed on tyre dealers.

KOTA KINABALU: City Hall may lift the ban on the disposal of used tyres at Kayu Madang landfill but with a certain amount of fee charged on tyre dealers.

Mayor Datuk Abidin Madingkir said City Hall would inform tyre dealers when they could dispose of old tyres at the landfill once the quantum of fees had been worked out.

Abidin said this when asked to comment on the issue after a rehearsal on the launching of National Month and a campaign to fly the Jalur Gemilang at the City Hall grounds here yesterday.

West Coast, Kudat and Interior Tyre Dealers Association president Candy Wong said City Hall had banned dealers from dumping tyres there due to fires at the landfill.

Wong said it was the second time that City Hall had imposed the ban, the first was two months ago and again three weeks ago. As a result, Wong said tyre dealers started accumulating old tyre casings at the compounds of their business premises and risked being fined by the Health Department for letting their premises be a breeding ground for aedes mosquitoes.

In response, Abidin said City Hall had prohibited tyre dealers from dumping used tyres at the landfill because of a recent fire.

“Although they said the (fire) was not caused by the disposed tyres, we found that this was one of the reasons of the fire.

“There were irresponsible people who went to Kayu Madang and set the tyres on fire,” he said.

Abidin said City Hall had discussed the issue when it was published in the local papers.

“Maybe we will allow (dispose used tyres at Kayu Madang) but they will be charged a certain amount of fee which we will decide.”

He said the used tyres took up a large amount of space at the landfill and keeping fee would be charged for the maintenance of Kayu Madang.

On when City Hall would lift the ban as the used tyres are at risk of being a breeding ground for aedes mosquitoes, Abidin said the instruction would be issued as soon as possible.

“I do not think they (tyre dealers) can accumulate 1,000 tyres in a day.

“Before that where did they put their tyres? At their premises also. “But we will inform them as soon as possible once we have worked out the quantum of the keeping fee.”