Officials silent on waste crisis<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A week after Bekasi municipal administration decided not to
\nextend the use of Bantar Gebang dump site to accommodate
\nJakarta's 6,000 tons of daily waste, Jakarta administration
\nofficials remain tightlipped on their plans to avoid a waste
\ncrisis in the capital.<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso said on Friday that he would not insist that
\nBekasi extend the agreement, signed for the first time in 1986.<\/p>\n
\"The decision is in Bekasi's hands,\" he said at the City Hall.<\/p>\n
The governor refused to explain how Jakarta will cope with its
\nwaste if no alternative site is made available after the
\nagreement runs out on Dec. 31, 2003.<\/p>\n
Salamat Limbong, head of the City Sanitation Agency
\nresponsible for handling the city's garbage, also declined to
\ncomment.<\/p>\n
\"I'm so sorry, I can't explain it,\" was his only attempt to
\nanswer questions pertaining to his agency's preparations in the
\nremaining eight weeks.<\/p>\n
City Hall's spokesman Muhayat still believes that Bekasi's
\ndecision to close down Bantar Gebang is not final. However, he
\nhad nothing further to say on the matter either.<\/p>\n
The only facility that may be available to treat the capital's
\ndaily garbage is a water treatment plant using German technology,
\nplanned for Bojong village, Bogor regency. But the facility could
\nonly process around 1,500 tons of waste daily, far from the
\ncapital's waste production.<\/p>\n
Besides the limited capacity, the planned facility has also
\nbeen opposed by locals who fear that they will suffer from
\nrespiratory problems and other ailments caused by polluted air
\nand contaminated ground water, as in Bantar Gebang.<\/p>\n
Bekasi closed down Bantar Gebang dump site at the end of 2001
\nafter which a waste crisis hit the capital, leaving garbage piled
\nup on the streets.<\/p>\n
The crisis ended with President Megawati Soekarnoputri's
\nintervention. Finally, Jakarta agreed to pay Rp 22 billion
\n(US$2.59 million) to Bekasi, of which Rp 14 billion was paid in
\n2002 and the remaining Rp 8 billion this year.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso said in July that the city will be ready to handle
\nthe garbage it produces by the end of this year. He also said
\nthat the relevant officials would be responsible if they failed
\nto resolve the issue.<\/p>\n
\"If they have lied, hang them all up together,\" he stated at
\nthat time.<\/p>\n
However, he revised his statement last month, saying that he
\nwas optimistic that negotiations with Bekasi would be successful
\nand the extension of Bantar Gebang dump would go ahead.<\/p>\n
Salamat told City Council Commission D on development affairs
\nin July that his agency had prepared two waste treatment
\nfacilities in Bojong and in Cakung, North Jakarta. Both would be
\nready by December, he said.<\/p>\n
The total capacity of the two facilities, operated by PT Wira
\nGulfindo Sarana, will reach around 2,500 tons per day using the
\nGerman ball press technology. The city must pay a tipping fee to
\nthe company at Rp 53,000 (US$6.5) per ton.<\/p>\n
The agency's plan to set up a dump site in Duri Kosambi, West
\nJakarta, with a target of 1,000 tons, also faces a problem. The
\nadministration has yet to issue a permit for its construction.<\/p>",
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