Bosscha gets ready to fight for its survival<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung, West Java<\/p>\n
Bosscha Observatory in Bandung is slated to hold a seminar today,
\nwhich is aimed at saving the observatory from the wrecking ball.<\/p>\n
Moedji Rahardjo, the head of Bosscha Observatory, asserted on
\nThursday that the observatory was now on the brink of eviction,
\nbecause "certain interest groups" were trying to buy several
\nplots of lands surrounding the observatory, in order to turn it
\ninto a tourist\/entertainment site.<\/p>\n
Lembang, north of Bandung, is a hilly area where the Bosscha
\nObservatory has been standing for 80 years and also a famous
\ntourist resort.<\/p>\n
"They are either businessmen or bureaucrats, and they've even
\nbeen asking about the possibility whether the observatory can be
\nmoved to another location," Moedji told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Moedji said it was unfortunate that there were such narrow-
\nminded people in positions of power.<\/p>\n
Moedji said that Bosscha Observatory had fought in the last
\nmeeting with local government officials over the planned
\nconstruction of a 75-hectare tourism project in the area close to
\nBosscha.<\/p>\n
Moedji said that he had told the local government officials,
\nincluding the regent of Bandung regency, that any construction
\nwithin a radius of one kilometer from the observatory would
\nsharply reduce the performance of the telescopes in the
\nobservatory.<\/p>\n
"Even, a study in 1989 showed that ideally, there should be no
\nbuildings within a radius of 2.5 kilometers from the
\nobservatory," said Moedji.<\/p>\n
The presence of buildings in this radius would increase the
\nintensity of light in the area, and would thus undermine the
\nability of the telescopes in the observatory, he added.<\/p>\n
"We have been here for 80 years. Don't push us out of here,"
\nhe pled.<\/p>\n
In order to prevent the eviction, Moedji said that the
\nobservatory had pursued several tacts, including by staging a
\nseminar on the protection of the environment surrounding the
\nobservatory.<\/p>\n
The seminar, which is to be held today, will feature Otto
\nSoemarwoto, the expert on environmental issues from the Bandung-
\nbased Padjadjaran University and Denny Zulkaidi, a planetologist
\nfrom the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB).<\/p>\n
He said that the outcome of the seminar would be conveyed to
\nthe Minister of Environment and the Minister of National
\nEducation, in a bid to stop the planned tourism project from
\nencroaching on the land, that could both endanger the environment
\nand the existence of the observatory.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bosscha-gets-ready-to-fight-for-its-survival-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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