A self-professed naturalist turned to Mother Nature to treat waste water from his Langkawi resort - he uses hyacinths.
Anthony Wong, 57, said he used the water plant after environmental degradation disrupted the flow of water in the river and left it stinking.
“Our waste water discharges into the river and this made it worse. I knew as a child that water hyacinth could be used to treat dirty water in farms.
Wong then devised the system which treated the waste successfully. He also used other water plants in the system to treat the waste water.
Wong said he did not want to see Langkawi suffer the same fate as some beach resort destinations where people could not swim in the seas anymore.
Wong’s efforts received recognition when he won the Pata Gold Award 2012 in the category “Environment - Educational Programme” for his waste water management.
He said many people from around the country and region are visiting the resort to learn about the system.
Despite taking six years to research, Wong does not hesitate to share the technology.
His advice to young entrepreneurs: “It is important as a team leader to motivate their teams to understand the value of going green and remain committed to environmentally-friendly practices.”
“They need to motivate their employees to make them understand and embrace the value of it so that they too could see the long-term benefits. It cannot be done overnight so you need work on it continuously,” he said.
