Malaysia’s beaches are more than popular holiday spots. They are also natural spaces that need long-term care and protection, especially as marine waste continues to affect coastal areas.
With this in mind, OSK Group launched COMB-AT (OSK Beach Combing), a year long coastal conservation initiative aimed at tackling marine litter and supporting the sustainability of Malaysia’s coastal tourism destinations.
Carrying the tagline “Comb the Coast, Combat the Waste,” the initiative officially started at Pantai Balok, Kuantan, on 22nd August 2026. Unlike a one-time beach clean-up, COMB-AT will be happen regularly and will also focus on understanding the types and amount of waste found along the coastline.
More Than Just Picking up Waste
COMB-AT combines beach cleaning with waste segregation, weighing and data recording. By recording what is collected during each session, OSK Group and it’s partners hope to better understand waste patterns along the coast.
The information gathered throughout the year will help establish baseline data on marine litter and could be used to plan more focused environmental efforts in the future.
Each session will cover approximately 1.4 kilometres of shoreline, or around 45,000 square metres. With activities conducted monthly, the programme is expected to cover approximately 42 kilometres of shoreline over it’s duration.
During the beach combing activity at the launch, participants collected 68.75KG of waste.
Plastic and plastic bottles made up the largest amount at 38.15KG, followed by 7.35KG of garden waste, 7.20KG of fabric, 5.30KG of rope, 3.40KG of paper and cardboard and 3.20KG of mixed waste.
Participants also collected 1.85KG of polystyrene, 1KG of rubber, 0.90KG of cans and 0.40KG of glass.
Bringing Different Communities Together
Around 100 participants took part in the launch, including OSK employees, local community members, students, volunteers, government representatives and partner organisations.
The initiative is organized by OSK Group with support from OSK Capital and Swiss-Grand Beach Resort Kuantan. It is carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC), Tourism Pahang, and Majlis Bandaraya Kuantan (MBK) while SWCorp serves as it’s technical partner.
The launch was officiated by MOTAC Secretary General Dato’Shaharuddin bin Abu Sohot, who highlighted the importance of protecting Malaysia’s beaches as a valuable asset for the tourism sector.
He said keeping these destinations protected is important not only for the environment, but also for the long-term strength of Malaysia’s tourism industry. He added that programmes such as COMB-AT show what can be achieved when the government, private sector, local authorities and communities work together.
Dato’ Saiful Bahri bin Zainuddin, Executive Director of OSK Group, said sustainability should go beyond reports and be turned into real action. He explained that COMB-AT allows OSK employees, partners and the community to contribute directly while also helping the Group understand environmental challenges more clearly. The data collected with SWCorp can then help guide more informed and long-term solutions.
COMB-AT also builds on OSK Group’s existing circular economy and waste management efforts.
In 2025, the Group diverted 198,668KG of metal, 153,356KG of paper and 784,437KG of plastic from landfills. According to OSK Group, this was more than double the total amount diverted in the previous year.
The initiative also supports several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These include SDG 14: Life Below Water, through efforts to reduce marine pollution; SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, through better waste management and resource recovery and SDG 17: Partnership for the Goals, through cooperation between the public, private and community sectors.
Protecting the Destination Around It’s Hospitality Business
Pantai Balok also has a connection to OSK Group’s hospitality operations, as Swiss-Grand Beach Resorts Kuantan is located along the coastline.
The newly refurbished resort is part of the Swiss-Garden International hospitality portfolio, established in 1991, and recently received five-star recognition from MOTAC.
For OSK Group, protecting the natural environment surrounding it’s hospitality operations is part of it’s responsibility toward the destinations and communities where it operates.
Through COMB-AT, OSK Group hopes to build a lasting culture of environmental responsibility by bringing it’s employees, partners and local communities together to protect the natural spaces that also play an important role in Malaysia’s tourism industry.
