Residents protest textile factory over pollution<\/p>\n
BOGOR (JP): Dozens of Nanggewer villagers living near the
\nKalibaru River in the Cibinong subdistrict here continued on
\nTuesday to demand that a nearby textile factory immediately stop
\ndumping its wastewater into the river.<\/p>\n
The villagers said the waste from PT Surya Abadi Tekstil had
\nbadly polluted the river and regularly killed tons of fish being
\nfarmed in ponds on the side of the river.<\/p>\n
The polluted water, particularly noxious during the rainy
\nseason, also left a foul odor on clothes washed in the river,
\nsaid Ansor, a village resident.<\/p>\n
According to Ansor, who claimed to represent dozens of
\nvillagers from two neighborhoods, the people only wanted to stop
\nthe dumping of poisonous wastes into the river.<\/p>\n
\"The latest incident occurred last month, when many of our
\nfish were killed. The total loss reached some Rp 3 million,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
This incident sparked the anger of the residents, who marched
\nabout one kilometer to demand accountability from the textile
\nfactory.<\/p>\n
\"The executives of the company finally gave the villagers
\ncompensation worth only Rp 1.4 million, arguing that the death of
\nthe fish might not have been because of the factory's waste,\"
\nAnsor said.<\/p>\n
Besides being used for farming fish, the river also serves as
\na place for the local villagers to wash their clothes.<\/p>\n
\"When the river's polluted, we have to filter the water with a
\ncloth. But we still have to use water from the well if we want to
\nkeep the bad odor out of the clothes,\" Ansor said.<\/p>\n
None of the executives at Surya Abadi Tekstil could be reached
\nfor comment, but the head of the factory's security, Dasuki, told
\nThe Jakarta Post that his company had done no harm to either the
\nvillagers or the river.<\/p>\n
\"This factory has its own wastewater treatment facility and
\nhas been inspected every month by officials from the Water
\nEnvironment Laboratorium of the West Java provincial Water
\nDevelopment and Research Center,\" Dasuki said.<\/p>\n
\"It means that the wastewaster (dumped from the factory) has
\nalready met the standard prerequisites as required by existing
\nregulations,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Dasuki's statement was supported by Noor Subekti, head of the
\nBogor administration's pollution prevention office.<\/p>\n
\"To my knowledge,\" he said, \"the factory has its own
\nwastewater treatment facility.\"<\/p>\n
However, Noor said that the factory might have circumvented
\nthe inspections by operating the wastewater treatment system for
\nthe inspection teams, and then switching the system off after the
\nofficials had left the site.<\/p>\n
\"This often happens because operating such a wastewater
\ntreatment facility costs a lot of money,\" the official said,
\nadding that his office would examine the villagers' complaint
\nsoon.<\/p>\n
Dasuki explained that the factory's wastewater was dumped into
\nthe Kalibaru River at 10 a.m. every day.<\/p>\n
However, the villagers claimed that the textile factory dumped
\nits harmful waste into the river at about 3 a.m., when the
\nvillagers were already in their homes.<\/p>\n
\"That's why the river is always crystal clear in the
\ndaylight,\" Ansor said. (24\/bsr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/residents-protest-textile-factory-over-pollution-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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