Another garbage crisis on the horizon<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Jakarta residents might face more garbage problems with the
\nscheduled closure of the 104-hectare Bantar Gebang dump in Bekasi
\nmayoralty at the end of this year as the city does not seem ready
\nto handle the 6,000 tons of garbage it produces daily.<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso said on Thursday the city administration
\nwould be ready to handle the closure of Bantar Gebang, where most
\nof the garbage produced by Jakarta is dumped.<\/p>\n
But data on dump sites and garbage management facilities at
\nthe city sanitation agency shows that there is still a lot of
\nwork to do before the city is able to process all of its own
\ngarbage.<\/p>\n
"I have ordered the city sanitation agency to manage the
\ngarbage by using the proper technology. They said that they could
\ndo it," Sutiyoso told reporters at the National Monument (Monas)
\npark while attending the observance of World Environment Day.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso was asked to comment on what the city administration
\nwould do after the closure of Bantar Gebang dump site by in six
\nmore months.<\/p>\n
City Hall spokesman Achyat M. Awe revealed that the city
\nadministration was in the process of beginning to prepare three
\ndump sites, one in Jonggol, Bogor, West Java; another in Duri
\nKosambi, West Jakarta; and one in Cilincing, East Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Quoting data at the city sanitation agency, Achyat said the
\nJonggol dump site, which will use ball press technology and be
\nmanaged by PT Wira Golvindo, will be able to process some 2,000
\ntons of garbage per day.<\/p>\n
While the garbage management facility in Duri Kosambi, which
\nwill transform the trash into bio-fertilizer, is expected to
\naccommodate some 1,000 tons of garbage per day. This facility
\nwill be managed by PT Interindo Global.<\/p>\n
And another dump site in Cilincing, which will also be
\noperated by PT Wira Golvindo and will also use the ball press
\ntechnology, is expected to accommodate some 1,000 tons per day.<\/p>\n
Achyat said that 80 percent of the construction of the three
\ngarbage management facilities have been completed and they are
\nexpected to be ready by early 2004, after Bantar Gebang will be
\nclosed.<\/p>\n
Achyat said the city is now seeking private partners to manage
\nthe rest of some 2,000 tons of garbage, which would not be able
\nto be accommodated at the other three sites.<\/p>\n
Achyat's data is based on the latest report of the head of the
\ncity sanitation agency, Salamat Limbong, to the governor.<\/p>\n
"It is better if I do not comment on it (Bantar Gebang
\nclosure) as I have made a report to the governor," said Limbong,
\nwho is the official most responsible for the garbage.<\/p>\n
Jakarta first began using the Bantar Gebang dump in 1986. An
\nofficial agreement was signed by Jakarta and Bekasi in 1999,
\nwhich required Jakarta to repair any environment damage and pay
\ncompensation of Rp 1 billion in 2000. In the next year, the city
\npaid compensation of Rp 2.5 billion.<\/p>\n
In December 2001, however, Bekasi closed its dump site due to
\nthe environmental damage. As a result, Jakarta was hit by a
\ngarbage crisis as most of the waste was left to pile up on street
\ncorners and neighborhoods throughout the city.<\/p>\n
A week later, Bekasi reopened the dump.<\/p>\n
It was not until President Megawati Soekarnoputri and State
\nMinister for Environment Nabiel Makarim intervened that both
\nparties later agreed to sign another agreement in January 2002
\nfor the extension of the use of Bantar Gebang dump site. Jakarta
\nagreed to pay Rp 14 billion (US$1.4 million) and build various
\nfacilities including a community health center and a water
\npipeline in three villages of Bantar Gebang district: Ciketing
\nUdik, Cikiwul and Sumur Batu.<\/p>",
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