Fish farmers want city to pay compensation<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Twenty-four fish farmers in Cilincing subdistrict, North Jakarta,
\ndemanded on Wednesday that the city administration provide Rp 340
\nmillion (US$40,476) in compensation for polluting their fish
\nfarms by dumping waste in a nearby swampland that is the site of
\nCilincing dump.<\/p>\n
The compensation was calculated from the potential profits
\nthey estimate to have lost from the pollution. The farmers are
\nalso considering a class action against the administration if it
\ndoes not compensate them for their losses.<\/p>\n
State Minister of the Environment Nabiel Makarim and his
\ndeputy Darsono, who is in charge of legal affairs, met with the
\nfarmers' representatives and promised to help them claim
\ncompensation from the Jakarta Administration.<\/p>\n
\"We hope the administration will pay for our losses. If it
\nrefuses to meet our demand, we will file a report with the
\npolice,\" fish farmer Eddy Djubaedi told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Eddy has a 2.5-hectare fish farm and nine hectares of rice
\nfields near Cilincing dump.<\/p>\n
Other fish farms have also been affected by liquid waste that
\nhas allegedly seeped from the dump since Jakarta started to dump
\nits garbage at Cilincing after it withdrew from Bantar Gebang
\ndump in Bekasi municipality on Jan. 4.<\/p>\n
Jakarta and Bekasi finally agreed on Monday to reopen Bantar
\nGebang and the dump started processing the capital's waste again
\non Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Eddy said the farmers would not be able to farm fish for the
\nnext five years due to the pollution. The state minister's office
\nhad confirmed earlier that the liquid waste from Cilincing dump
\nhad polluted the farmers' fish farms and destroyed their stock.<\/p>\n
The city administration has denied the allegations.<\/p>\n
Darsono said the office would follow up the reports by
\ninvestigating the problems the fish farms were facing.<\/p>\n
The results of the investigation will provide evidence to
\nsupport the farmers' demand for compensation from the capital, he
\nsaid, while strengthening an earlier report that showed pollution
\nat the farms.<\/p>\n
\"We are ready to facilitate talks between the farmers and the
\ncapital,\" he said, adding that the office would help farmers to
\nfile a class action, if necessary.<\/p>\n
Darsono said the office had also considered taking the Jakarta
\nAdministration to court for damaging the environment around
\nCilincing dump.<\/p>\n
The state minister's office is authorized under Law No.
\n23\/1997 on environmental protection to take legal action against
\nthose causing environmental damage.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Residents Forum (Fakta) chairman Azas Tigor Nainggolan
\nsaid the police could investigate into the allegations of
\nenvironmental damage under the Environmental Law, and hoped they
\nwould take an active stance in the matter.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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