For years, the Klang River has been known as one of Malaysia’s most polluted waterways. But in a promising turn of events, otters have been spotted swimming in its waters once again—a hopeful sign that the river’s health is improving.
The Ocean Cleanup, a global nonprofit dedicated to tackling plastic pollution, recently shared a video capturing the return of these playful creatures. Otters are highly sensitive to pollution, meaning their presence is a strong indication that the water quality has significantly improved.
This positive change can be credited to the efforts of The Ocean Cleanup and the Selangor Maritime Gateway. Since 2019, two Interceptor trash collectors have been deployed in the Klang River, working around the clock to remove waste from the water.
To date, these high-tech devices have extracted over 3.2 million kilogrammes of trash—the equivalent of more than 10,000 Perodua Myvis’ worth of rubbish! Thanks to these cleanup efforts, the river’s ecosystem is slowly recovering, making it safer for wildlife to thrive.
While there is still much work to be done, the return of otters proves that restoration is possible. The challenge now is to keep the momentum going by being more responsible with waste disposal and keeping our waterways clean.
Every effort, no matter how small, contributes to a cleaner, healthier environment. Let’s do our part to ensure that the Klang River continues to recover—because if the otters can come back, so can the rest of our precious wildlife.
