Fishermen threaten to shut down power plant<\/p>\n
Kasparman, The Jakarta Post, Padang, West Sumatra<\/p>\n
Some 1,400 fishermen on Monday threatened to cut off the water
\nsupply to the Singkarak hydropower plant in West Sumatra, saying
\nits operations had depleted the Singkarak Lake's fish population.<\/p>\n
The fishermen, from various villages surrounding the lake,
\ndemanded the government and state-owned electricity company PLN
\nrespond to the threat the power plant posed to their livelihoods
\nduring a rally at the provincial legislature in Padang.<\/p>\n
Although short of imposing an ultimatum, the protesters told
\nlegislators they would close a tunnel which channels water from
\nthe dam to propel the plant's turbines.<\/p>\n
\"The PLTA (hydropower plant) has drained the lake's fish
\npopulation by sucking fish into the tunnel ...,\" Singkarak Lake
\nfishing community forum head Masrial Akmal said.<\/p>\n
Fishermen complained in particular about the decline in the
\npopulation of the bilih fish, which they said was endemic to the
\nlake.<\/p>\n
Fishermen Arles Rusman said that prior to the plant's opening
\nin 1998, he could catch between 10 kilograms and 20 kilograms of
\nbilih fish per day. \"Now catching just one kilogram is
\ndifficult,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Masrial said the fisherman had been complaining ever since,
\nbut neither the government nor PLN had responded.<\/p>\n
No one at PLN's headquarter in Jakarta could be reached for
\ncomment when telephoned after office hours on Monday.<\/p>\n
PLN had established breeding farms to maintain fish stocks.
\nThe fry were then released into the lake, the fishermen said.<\/p>\n
But they said this method failed to increase bilih stocks as
\nthe fry were eaten by the bigger fish in the lake.<\/p>\n
\"We know this PLTA is making a profit all the time, so we
\nask that some of this profit be used to compensate us for our
\nlosses,\" said Masrial.<\/p>\n
The group also demanded an environmental impact study on the
\npower plant's operations.<\/p>",
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