Ang Mo Kio resident sees red after soiled sanitary pads land on his air-con condenser

Soiled sanitary napkins littering the air-con condenser unit of a flat in Ang Mo Kio is making a resident see red.

The resident, surnamed Zheng, said he has faced this issue for the past six months.

"Before March, it only happened occasionally. Now, it happens every month," the 61-year-old told Shin Min Daily News.

Besides landing on the air-con condenser units of the several flats at Block 623 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 9, the soiled sanitary napkins would also end up on the plants hanging outside his unit, Zheng added.

"I can see them as soon as I open the window," he said.

Nowadays, the resident doesn't dare to open his windows for fear of the sanitary napkins landing in his room.

Upset by the situation, Zheng made several reports to his town council and the National Environment Agency (NEA).

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Believing that a neighbour is throwing the items out of their bathroom window, he pointed the finger at an elderly woman living in one of the units above him.

When visited by a Shin Min reporter, the resident surnamed Liu denied the claims, saying that her family members dispose of sanitary napkins in plastic bags. 

She added that she never saw sanitary pads on her own air-con condenser unit.

In response to AsiaOne's queries, a spokesperson from the Ang Mo Kio Town Council said that they are aware of the high-rise littering situation and have promptly cleared the affected areas.

"To address this issue proactively, we have displayed advisories at the block to remind residents to refrain from high-rise littering," added the spokesperson.

The town council is also working closely with NEA to monitor the situation.

High-rise littering

Over the years, several housing estates have been plagued by such litterbugs.

In 2017, a 28-year-old woman was fined $1,600 and sentenced to three hours of Corrective Work Order for throwing soiled sanitary pads out the window of her home in Toa Payoh.

Despite outreach initiatives by the town council and grassroots organisations, the woman continued to litter.

She was subsequently caught in the act by a surveillance camera deployed by NEA.

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Two years later, the topic also sparked a lively exchange in Parliament among MPs as they spoke about a culprit who threw used sanitary pads for years in Yishun.

The House heard that NEA's repeated stakeouts did not manage to help nab the culprit.

Former MP Lee Bee Wah said: "If you had the ambition to catch the culprit, you will be able to catch (her). Otherwise, looks like this problem will disappear only when the litterbug (reaches) menopause."

Under the Environmental Public Health Act (EPHA), a first-time offender of high-rise littering may face a fine of up to $2,000.

For each subsequent conviction, an offender may face fines of up to $4,000 and $10,000.

They may also be made to undergo a Corrective Work Order to clean public areas for up to 12 hours.

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dana.leong@asiaone.com