Kuala Lampur, Oct. 15 -- Every day, Malaysians throw away about 39,000 tonnes of solid waste, more than our landfills can comfortably absorb. In 2024, the country generated 15.2 million tonnes of solid waste, and that figure is expected to climb to 17.03 million tonnes by 2035. At this rate, our landfills could reach full capacity by 2041. Much of this waste never needed to be buried. SWCorp estimates that nearly 40 per cent of what Malaysians send to landfill has recycling potential. Food waste alone makes up 44.5 per cent of household waste, and instead of being composted, it rots in landfills.

To deal with the pile-up, the government has turned to waste-to-energy (WtE) incinerators. The Jeram plant in Kuala Selangor, for example, can ...