Hazardous waste a threat in RI's major cities: WB expert<\/p>\n
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Hazardous industrial waste is becoming an increasing threat to
\nthe country's biggest cities, including Jakarta, Semarang in
\nCentral Java, and Surabaya in East Java, according to an expert.<\/p>\n
Hazardous waste, by itself or after coming into contact with
\nother waste, has characteristics such as chemical reactivity,
\ntoxicity, corrosiveness or a tendency to explode, posing a threat
\nto human health and the environment.<\/p>\n
Thomas E. Walton, head of the World Bank team that drafted The
\nIndonesia Environment Monitor 2003 report, said here over the
\nweekend that the possibility of bodies of water becoming
\ncontaminated with toxic and inorganic waste was increasingly
\nbecoming a concern in regions with high concentrations of home
\nindustries and large textile dyeing industries.<\/p>\n
\"Anecdotal evidence suggests that significant quantities of
\ntoxic and hazardous waste are being disposed in uncontrolled
\nlandfills and dumped in rivers with other industrial waste,\" says
\nthe report, which was jointly unveiled on Saturday by the Office
\nof the State Minister for the Environment and the World Bank.<\/p>\n
Jakarta, Semarang and Surabaya are home to a wide range of
\nhome industries and large textile dyeing industries, almost all
\nof them without proper waste disposal methods.<\/p>\n
\"Factories in major cities usually dispose their hazardous
\nwaste in their industry compound dumping site or local dumping
\nsite. But the dumping site is not appropriate and uncontrolled,\"
\nWalton told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
It was conservatively estimated that Indonesia produced more
\nthan one million tons of hazardous waste in 2000.<\/p>\n
The report, which calls for concerted efforts to reduce
\npollution, is supported by data from a number of institutions,
\nincluding the government, the Indonesian Forum for the
\nEnvironment (Walhi) Jakarta, and the Indonesian Biodiversity
\ngroup.<\/p>\n
Walton said major industrial cities outside Jakarta were
\nunlikely to bring their hazardous waste to the Cileungsi
\nhazardous waste treatment plant, near Jakarta, for financial
\nreasons.<\/p>\n
The Cileungsi treatment plant is the only facility in
\nIndonesia that has processing capabilities as well as a secure
\nstorage area and a lined landfill for the disposal of stabilized
\nand low-level toxins.<\/p>\n
In 2002, the Cileungsi plant treated over 32,000 tons of
\nhazardous waste, an increase from about 30,000 tons in 2001 and
\n27,000 tons in 2000.<\/p>\n
Walton urged the administrations in major industrial cities to
\nset up databases on hazardous waste in their cities, in order to
\nprovide information and monitor the types of hazardous waste,
\nlocations and quantities.<\/p>\n
Monitoring also should be conducted frequently and
\nconcentrations of mercury, copper and chromium should be measured
\nregularly, Walton said.<\/p>\n
Yanuardi Rasudin, deputy assistant in charge of mining,
\nenergy, oil and gas at the Office of the State Minister for the
\nEnvironment, said the monitoring and regular measuring of
\nhazardous waste should be increased to minimize the threat of
\ntoxic waste to the environment and human health.<\/p>\n
He said there had been a positive trend over the last two
\nyears of firms seeking licenses to treat their own hazardous
\nwaste, in response to a government program to environmentally
\naudit companies that pollute the environment.<\/p>\n
As of November 2002, the government has issued 219 licenses to
\ncompanies that produce hazardous waste to treat their own waste.<\/p>\n
\"What we should do now is monitor the hazardous waste
\nmanagement of companies to see whether they are complying with
\nour requirements,\" he said.<\/p>",
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