SHAH ALAM: The state will take firm action against landowners who allow open burning on their properties by seizing their land.

“A taskforce has been set up to seize land which has open burning and where the owner doesn’t do anything about it,” said state executive councillor Elizabeth Wong (pic).

Wong, whose portfolio includes environment, said this after the state executive council meeting on Wednesday.

She said the state was especially cracking down on about 100 landowners in Johan Setia who have been allowing open burning on nearly 600 hectares of land.

“For more than a month, the fire department, Klang Municipal Council (MPK) and volunteers have been trying to put out the fires,” she said.

However, due to the nature of the land which is made up of mostly peat, the fires have been difficult to put out.

The taskforce, under the land development portfolio managed by Khalid, will be looking to seize lands where open burning takes place.

“As it is now the dry season, there have been more hotspots where open burning is found in Sumatera. We have detected over 400 hotspots there,” Wong said.

She said as winds were carrying the smoke to Peninsular Malaysia, residents, especially those on the west coast, have been advised to refrain from strenuous activities.

She added that the order to cease any open burning in the Klang Valley still stands and warned the public against conducting illegal open burning.