Leave cars at home on Earth Day: Official<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): In search of some fresh air, owners of private
\ncars and motorcycles across the country are requested to leave
\ntheir vehicles at home for 12 hours on April 23.<\/p>\n
The gesture to refrain from driving private vehicles from 6
\na.m. to 6 p.m. is in conjunction with Earth Day, which falls on
\nApril 22.<\/p>\n
State Minister of Environment Sonny Keraf said at a press
\nconference on Thursday that the date for the private vehicle-free
\nday was set for Monday because Earth Day is Sunday.<\/p>\n
\"We realize that one or two days of (this kind of) effort
\nwon't be enough to solve our very polluted earth, but at least we
\ncan show our personal responsibility (toward it),\" Sonny said.<\/p>\n
He said earlier there was no sanction for those who did not
\nwant to participate in the collective action.<\/p>\n
Head of Jakarta's Environmental Impact Management Agency Aboe
\nJoewono told reporters that private cars and motorbikes were
\nchosen because they contributed more to air pollution compared to
\npublic transportation due to their larger numbers.<\/p>\n
He said vehicles, mostly privately owned, contributed 60
\npercent of the air pollution in the country.<\/p>\n
Data from the Directorate of Land Transportation at the
\nMinistry of Communications stated that 86 percent of motorized
\nvehicles in Jakarta are privately owned while there were 488,500
\npublic transportation vehicles.<\/p>\n
Sonny said there would be an air quality check before and
\nafter the date to see if the program had made a difference to
\ncurrent conditions.<\/p>\n
An assistant at his office, Aca Sugandhy, said that the
\nactivity was not new in Indonesia. He was referring to the
\nBalinese' Hindu Day of Silence where people refrain from daily
\nactivities.<\/p>\n
Other plans for Earth Day in the country include a campaign to
\nsubstitute the ozone depleting CFCs (chlorofluorocarbon) with
\nsafer substances such as hydrocarbons (HC) and a campaign to end
\nthe use of leaded gasoline.<\/p>\n
Earth Day was first held in 1970 in the United States under
\nthe initiative of U.S. senator Gaylord Nelson. (08)<\/p>",
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