River trash blamed on city agency<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): People living along the city's riverbanks blamed
\nrefuse collectors on Friday for the accumulation of garbage in
\nthe rivers and for the continuing floods.<\/p>\n
They said they dumped their waste into the rivers because the
\nrefuse collectors repeatedly skipped their houses, leaving them
\nto deal with their garbage on their own.<\/p>\n
"Throwing garbage into the river is our only choice, because
\nthe city's sanitation agency services are so poor," said Iswadi,
\na resident who lives close to the Ciliwung river in Kampung
\nMelayu subdistrict, East Jakarta.<\/p>\n
He said the clean river campaign should not be delegated to
\nthe city's residents, as it also needs the city administration's
\nassistance.<\/p>\n
"If the city administration fails to provide a service, I
\nthink every river will always be in a bad condition.<\/p>\n
"The sanitation agency does not serve the riverside dwellers,
\nalthough each of us pays Rp 1,500 (21 US cents) per month for
\nsanitation services," he said.<\/p>\n
He said they had taken the initiative to bring their garbage
\nto a nearby refuse collection center.<\/p>\n
"But it proved useless because the agency's refuse collectors
\nonly collected our garbage once a week.<\/p>\n
"What happened was that a bad smell spread to the area," he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Neneng Sariani, who lives near the Keroncong riverbanks in
\nMenteng subdistrict, Central Jakarta, said all inhabitants were
\nrequired to pay a sanitation fee of Rp 2,000 per month.<\/p>\n
"But refuse trucks are only available in the neighboring
\ndistrict which is too far away from here.<\/p>\n
"If we want to have our garbage collected, we have to carry it
\nthere. It is too complicated so we just throw the waste into the
\nriver," she said.<\/p>\n
Neneng said she could understand if the refuse trucks or carts
\ncould not enter the area as the houses are situated overlooking
\nthe river.<\/p>\n
The 21-year-old housewife said the river was cleaned once a
\nweek, but those who did the cleaning were local residents who
\nworked without payment. "I don't know where the money goes," she
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
She said the Keroncong river had been in bad condition for a
\nlong time. The water is unmoving and all the families' liquid
\nwaste drains into the river.<\/p>\n
"The water only flows if the nearby Manggarai floodgate is
\nopened, which is usually only during the rainy season," she said.<\/p>\n
As a consequence, the stagnant Keroncong river was also prone
\nto flooding and was a breeding ground for mosquitoes.<\/p>\n
Data at the City Health Agency showed that from January until
\nNov. 9 2,812 city residents were hit by dengue fever, 40 of whom
\nhad died. During the same period last year the figure reached
\n14,912 people.<\/p>\n
Another Keroncong riverside inhabitant, Kartini, said the
\nriver's poor condition would spread dengue fever in the
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
"What else can we do? We're just poor families who can not
\nafford better sanitation," she said. (ind)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/river-trash-blamed-on-city-agency-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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