Three-ply face masks cannot be recycled
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Wednesday, 08 Jul 2020
BUTTERWORTH: Three-ply face masks cannot be recycled and those sending used face masks to recycling centres are putting people there at risk of infection.
Bagan Lalang Natural Resource Centre chairman Lim Chee Keong said volunteers at the centre received up to 50 non-woven face masks every day in the recycling bins when they should have been thrown away with other forms of domestic waste.
“Those who bring the used masks here have good intentions but are not aware of proper face masks disposal methods.
“At our segregation station, our volunteers have to suit up in protection gear to remove the masks from recyclable materials, ” said Lim.Three-ply or surgical masks are commonly made from mixtures of non-woven artificial fabrics and polypropylene thermoplastic and conventional recycling facilities cannot break them down for recycling.
Lim said the number of face masks found in their recycling bins were highest in April and May, when everyone was on high alert and used a lot of the masks daily.
'Larang jual aksesori kereta berisiko maut'
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Selasa, 7 Julai 2020 | 4:35pm
KAJANG: Institut Penyelidikan Keselamatan Jalan Raya Malaysia (MIROS) menggesa supaya diwujudkan satu peraturan yang melarang penjualan aksesori kenderaan yang berupaya mendatangkan risiko maut apabila berlaku kemalangan.
Ketua Pengarahnya, Dr Khairil Anwar Abu Kassim, berkata sehingga kini penjualan aksesori kereta tertentu termasuk penyambung tali keledar adalah dibenarkan berikutan tiada undang-undang yang mengawal penjualannya di pasaran.
"Peralatan ini tidak pernah 'tidak sah' dan ia boleh dijual di pasaran walaupun di kedai serbaneka, sedangkan jelas ia amat berbahaya jika digunakan pemandu kenderaan.
"Justeru, saya berasakan perlu diwujudkan satu undang-undang yang boleh mengawal atau menyekat penjualan aksesori kenderaan yang berbahaya kepada pengguna," katanya kepada BH, di sini.
Khairil berkata, pihaknya juga bercadang mengadakan pertemuan dengan pihak Kementerian Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Hal Ehwal Pengguna (KPDNHEP) membabitkan aspek penguatkuasaan.
Next 3 to 6 months crucial for economic recovery
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July 7, 2020 11:27 PM
KUALA LUMPUR: The coming three to six months will be crucial for the successful implementation of the National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana), which is expected to show results by the third or fourth quarter of 2020, the finance minister said.
Tengku Zafrul Aziz said Malaysia’s move to cut the overnight policy rate (OPR) today to a record low of 1.75% from 2% previously was driven by global economic conditions, which were still in the early stages of recovery from Covid-19.
He said that based on forecasts by various agencies such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, more than 150 of the 195 countries globally were expected to record economic contraction in 2020.
“The decision to reduce the OPR is aimed at accelerating the rate of recovery and further stimulate the country’s economy.
“The government believes that this move, combined with proactive measures deployed since March under the Prihatin and Prihatin SME+ economic stimulus packages and, more recently the National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana), will be able to regenerate the economy by creating jobs, restoring consumer and investor confidence, as well as containing the likelihood of a sharp economic contraction,” he said in a statement.
Why millennials must know that loan compression is a scam
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July 8, 2020 7:30 AM
Investing in real estate has become a popular means of diversifying one’s investment portfolio. Largely illiquid, real estate is generally considered a defensive long-term investment and a hedge against inflation.
The unprecedented nature of the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on the economy, together with existing market inefficiencies, has created an opportunity for arbitrage for the astute investor. The operative words here being “astute investor”, who is well-informed about the financial and market intricacies of investing in real estate.
This apparent opportunity is currently being peddled to the market at large in the guise of investor clubs and classes by investment “gurus”. In some cases it is being touted as a daring method to leverage oneself out of debt, and there has been a fair number of casualties.
Raine & Horne International + Zaki Partners senior partner and Fiabci president Michael Geh said a strategy is being advocated by some property investment gurus, advising prospective homebuyers to invest in more than one property to make fast money at this juncture.
“These property gurus guide potential buyers, especially millennials, to take on multiple financing, also known as loan compression. It is also associated with get-rich-quick schemes. However, this is not a new strategy as it has been practised for ages,” he told Property Advisor.
Read more: Why millennials must know that loan compression is a scam
Tok Pa: Expect higher poverty rate as revised index sheds light on Malaysia's socio-economic situation
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Tuesday, 07 Jul 2020 12:19 PM MYT
PUTRAJAYA, July 7 — The country could see a higher poverty rate as the government works to introduce a revised poverty line index (PLI), Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said today, following criticisms in a report published yesterday.
Mustapa said the new (PLI) will see a new methodology introduced, dubbed the 2019 methodology, which will include updated figures surrounding poverty as well as to better reflect the current social-economic situation in the country.
The previous methodology was formulated in 2005, with poverty currently benchmarked at RM980 at the national level and calculated based on the basic requirements for a household to live healthily and actively, according to the Department of Statistics.
The national poverty rate is only at 0.4 per cent, based on the 2005 methodology.
“If before this, the figures are at 0.4 per cent, then the percentage based on the new figures which we have dubbed the 2019 methodology, firstly the quantum of RM980 would definitely be higher, secondly it would be higher than 0.4 per cent,’’ he said to the press after the launch of Census 2020 by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin here,
Mustapa added that the revision into the PLI had taken place during the Mid-Term Review of the Eleventh Malaysia Plan in 2018.
Mustapa explained that the Department of Statistics had already conducted the revision of the necessary figures and the results have already been tabled to the Cabinet.
‘Discard used face masks safely’
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Wednesday, 08 Jul 2020
PETALING JAYA: Although putting on a face mask while out in public is now part of the new normal, many have yet to learn how to properly dispose of used masks.
In fact, discarding masks like litter, throwing them without segregating or even recycling them pose a risk to the environment and public health.
According to environment and waste management expert Dr Theng Lee Chong, face masks which end up in a landfill or on the streets are a “big threat to the environment”.
He said more troubling was the huge number of masks being used – an estimated 10 million pieces daily - with the numbers likely to increase when more students return to schools on July 15.
Theng noted while masks used in hospitals, clinics and labs were disposed into the medical waste stream, those used by the public ended up in the general waste stream, which has no facilities to properly dispose of such waste. “As each mask only weighs a few grams and it’s thin, we don’t see tremendous quantity in the waste stream in terms of weight but the impact could be huge in the long run.
Water disruption: Residents brace for chore of getting supply
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July 7, 2020 @ 10:15am
KUALA LUMPUR: Puchong Kinrara resident Mohd Khairul Helmy Mohd Din is pondering the situation which will require him to walk up and down from his apartment on the fifth floor next week.
While the 30-year-old is relieved by the early notice of water-supply disruption in his area from July 14 to 17, he is also concerned about the availability of water tankers.
Khairul is among those who will be affected during the four-day Selangor River Treatment Plant (LRA) Phase 3 (LRA SSP3) upgrading works starting July 14, involving 420,000 user accounts in 290 areas across five regions — Petaling, Klang, Gombak, Kuala Langat and Kuala Lumpur.
"I had experienced this a couple of times. Before this, I did not have time to store water and had to rely on the water tankers.
"It is exhausting since I need to go up and down my floor several times to refill the buckets.
"But at least the head start is helpful for us to predict how much water we need to store and use. What about the elderly? We try to help them out as neighbours, as much as we can."
Read more: Water disruption: Residents brace for chore of getting supply
Belanjawan 2021 tumpu empat tema
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Selasa, 7 Julai 2020 | 10:18am
KUALA LUMPUR: Pendidikan, peluang pekerjaan, perlindungan sosial dan mobiliti sosial akan diberi tumpuan dalam Belanjawan 2021, demikian menurut Menteri Kewangan, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.
Beliau berkata, Belanjawan 2021 akan dirangka merentasi empat tema utama dengan semuanya berpusat kepada pewujudan kerajaan yang lebih baik.
"Tema ini termasuk pedulikan rakyat, memacu ekonomi, kehidupan mampan dan menambahbaik penyampaian perkhidmatan awam," katanya ketika menyampaikan ucaptama di Invest Malaysia 2020, di sini, hari ini.
Sumber: https://www.bharian.com.my/berita/nasional/2020/07/708131/belanjawan-2021-tumpu-empat-tema
Water disruption coming
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Tuesday, 07 Jul 2020
KUALA LUMPUR: Some 290 areas in Petaling, Klang, Gombak, Kuala Lumpur and Kuala Langat will experience water supply disruption from July 14-17, affecting some 425,000 households.
According to Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd director and operations head Abas Abdullah, the Sungai Selangor Phase 3 Water Treatment Plant (SSP3 WTP) would be temporarily shut down from 9am on July 14 to replace certain critical assets and conduct upgrading work.
The supply is expected to be resumed fully by 5pm on July 17.
“The plant began operations in 2003 and the last upgrading work was in 2018, ” he said, adding that remedial work would enable the plant to operate more efficiently.
The duration of the disruption will vary throughout the affected areas, depending on the location.
The SSP3 WTP is expected to recommence distribution of water supply from 9am on July 15.
Understanding your BPE statement from TNB
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Tuesday, 07 Jul 2020 l 8:02 AM MYT
BY now, some of you might have already received your Bantuan Prihatin Elektrik Tambahan (BPE) statement via mail along with your July bill from Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB).
On June 20, the Government together with TNB announced the BPE as an additional one-off aid to benefit all 7.66 million domestic customers in the form of free electricity up to RM231 (RM77 per month) for the three months during the movement control order (MCO). This aid will be reflected in your actual bill.
This is in line with the Government’s efforts to ease the cost of living in the past few months.
In addition, domestic customers who use electricity between 601 to 900kWh per month will enjoy a 10% discount from now until December, which is an additional 8% on top of the existing 2% discount rate that they are currently enjoying.
Four sections to take note of are:
> Economic Stimulus discount
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