Pulau Burung Landfill & Marshland, Nibong Tebal

EarthDocumentary World Budget Travel Guide

Compare Hotel Room Rates from different Booking Sites

Pulau Burung Landfill & Marshland (5 May 2010)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Pulau Burung Landfill is a refuse landfill maintained by the Seberang Perai Municipal Council in Nibong Tebal. It is located at Pulau Burung, an island created by a canal linking Sungai Kerian and Sungai Tengah.

Pulau Burung is covered mostly by mangrove trees, except for the landfill area and the marshland created out of clearing the mangrove forest. The marshland is now an important habitat for several types of local birds. The marshland is a favourite spot among bird watchers. On my visit, I spotted the tern, grebe, lesser tree duck, marsh hen, marsh sandpiper, to name a few.

The landfill area is a prohibited zone, so the general public are not allowed to enter. From the outside, you can see lorries bringing in refuse from all over Penang to be dumped here.

Updates

26 May: It was reported in the Sun newspaper that the ponds where the waterfowls are seen are in fact contaminated with leachate, an untreated liquid derived from garbage. Leachate is taxic, as it contains trace metals such as mercury and cadmium. At the moment, the ponds are only contained by the bunds. There is concern that in the event of a spill, the leachate may seep into the water system and into the sea.

According to the Sun report, State Health, Welfare, Environment and Caring Society Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said that a stop-gap measure was to use water tankers to transport the leachate from the landfill to an Indah Water Konsortium treatment centre. At a press conference held at his office the day before, he said the spillage was worrying as it could adversely affect the environment and aquaculture farms in the area.

Getting there

Leave the North South Expressway Northern Route (E1) at Exit 156 (Jawi Interchange). After the toll plaza, turn left and go south along Federal Route 1. After the Nibong Tebal Steel Arch Bridge, exit Federal Route 1 and follow the exit ramp under the bridge. Enter the Nibong Tebal town, and then turn right down Jalan Ooi Kar Seng (P173). Follow this road even as it curves left and right, and you will arrive at the entrance of the landfill.

Click for list of Island Around Penang

Location Map of Pulau Burung

View Pulau Burung in a larger map

Photos of the Pulau Burung Landfill & Marshland

View of the marshland with the landfill in the background (5 May 2010)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Lesser tree duck at the Pulau Burung marshland (5 May 2010)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Grebe at the Pulau Burung marshland (5 May 2010)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Marshland at Pulau Burung (5 May 2010)
© Timothy Tye using this photo

Get the best rates when booking Penang hotels

Before booking a hotel room, make sure you are getting the lowest price for it. Different hotel booking websites offers the same room at different prices. If you stick with one site all the time, you could be paying more for the same room. Now why pay more?

The form below is a Research Engine. It doesn't take bookings. Instead it lets you find the hotel booking website that offers the room you want at the lowest price. You can see and compare what different sites are offering, and then click to choose the one with the best price. Do this, and you're guaranteed to save a whole lot of money on your room reservations!

Find a hotel

New York City
Bangkok
Amsterdam

Guests:

Rooms:

Great Travel Deals Wego.com

Flight Checker

Our Flight Checker helps travelers compare flights and get the lowest fare for their trips. If you're flying somewhere, use our Flight Checker to compare the rates from different airlines. To use it, enter where you will be flying from, where you will be flying to, your departure date and return date. Select the number of passengers, and then click search.

Our engine will return you a list of possible flights that you can take. You can compare the fare of different airlines for your trip. Click on your selected airline, and we transfer you to the airline website.

Return to Penang Travel Tips homepage

My message introducing God to all the world: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO TIM

Penang Travel Tips is researched and written by Timothy Tye, universally known as Tim. The text is the copyright of Timothy Tye, and may not be copied for commercial use or re-published in another website without the author's permission. Information provided is in goodwill and is believed to be correct and up-to-date at time of writing. Photographs on this website are the copyright of the author and may not be reused without prior permission. For commercial licensing of photographs, read the licensing terms.