Statement on plastic waste taken out of context, says Canada

Canada maintains that it is working with Malaysia to address any issues related to the shipment of waste from the country.

PETALING JAYA: The Canadian government today sought to clarify media reports stating that the country has no plans to take back its plastic waste in Malaysia, saying it issued the statement in regards to a specific ship coming from the Philippines.

In a statement, the Canadian High Commission said Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) had responded to a question from the media as to whether the ship would pick up waste in Malaysia while on its way to Canada.

“ECCC’s answer was that there were no plans for that particular ship to stop in Malaysia.

“Taken out of context, the statement made in the articles in question was not factually accurate,” it said.

It added that the Canadian government is working closely with the Malaysian authorities to address any issues related to the shipment of waste from Canada to Malaysia.

Last Thursday, a spokesman for ECCC, Canada’s environment ministry, was reported as saying that the country has no plans to pick up its plastic waste that is parked in Malaysia.

ECCC spokesman Gabrielle Lamontagne also said Canada had received no information about any shipment of waste from Canada to Malaysia, and said the ministry has reached out to Putrajaya for details.

Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin said on May 28 that 60 containers of plastic waste, weighing some 3,000 tonnes, discovered at Port Klang, would be sent back to their countries of origin.

These containers reportedly came from the US, Japan, Canada, Australia, China, Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh. -FMT