Regrettably in Malaysia a huge amount of POME is discharged daily without complete treatment into natural water
resources such as rivers, which causes colossal negative ecological effect. The conventional treatment methods (e.g. anaerobic digesters and aerated lagoons) are unable to meet the regulations set by the Department of Environment (DOE). According to DOE, the level of BOD for wastewater to be released into aquatic environments must be less than 100 mg/L