Clean, fresh air remains a dream for Jakarta

Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Wouldn't it be nice to be able to walk along Jakarta's roads without being suffocated by exhaust fumes from passing vehicles?

But even with the implementation of Bylaw No. 2/2005 on air pollution control in February next year, this utopian dream may probably stay just that: a dream.

True to its label as the third most polluted city in the world after Mexico City and Bangkok, Jakarta experienced only 18 days of fresh air in 2004, compared to 21 days in 2003 and 25 days in 2002.

And don't be surprised if what you inhale per cubic meter into your lungs during the day are actually pollutants, like more than 68,000 micrograms of carbon monoxide (CO), over 4,700 micrograms of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx), 5,928 micrograms of hydrocarbons and 369 micrograms of particulate matter.

"These are the estimated figures in 2005 based on data we have in 2002, taking into consideration the increasing number of motor vehicles in the city and diminishing green open spaces," environmental expert Ahmad Safrudin told The Jakarta Post.

According to the coordinator of non-governmental consortium Joint Committee for Leaded Gasoline Phase Out (KPBB), the ideal green open space for a densely populated city such as Jakarta is 30 percent. The city, however, only has 7 percent green open spaces.

One pollutant that causes environmentalists most concern is the high level of particulate matter in the city's air that causes breathing difficulties, particularly among the elderly and those suffering heart conditions.

Even if the implementation of Bylaw No. 2/2005 goes according to plan, and all obstacles have been miraculously smoothed out, it would take at least two to five years until people in the city could breathe the fresh air they deserve.

"But there are so many aspects to be considered, obstacles to overcome, that frankly we are pessimistic that it will happen at all," Ahmad, who is also chief executive of the Indonesian Lead Information Center, said.

Bylaw No. 2/2005 deals with overcoming air pollution by, among other things, controlling vehicle gas emissions and by the use of gas in all public transportation vehicles in the city.

Controlling emission levels in motor vehicles should be one of the easiest regulations to implement, especially since several regulations controlling this aspect have been issued since 1999.

Gubernatorial Instruction No. 24 for example, was issued in 1999 for the Jakarta Environmental Impact Management Agency (Bapedalda) for the application of an inspection and maintenance system (INM), and in 2000 Gubernatorial Decree No. 1041 on emission quality standards was issued.

"Previously all of this was voluntary, but with the bylaw it becomes mandatory, so enforcement should be easy," Ahmad said.

And yet, nothing is ever so simple. The number of cars in the city, for example, is estimated to be over 5.5 million, far exceeding the capability of the 108 auto workshops currently accredited to check gas emissions.

"And not every auto workshop can do a thorough inspection and maintenance," Ahmad said.

Substituting conventional fuel for environmentally friendly gas fuel in public transportation poses even more problems, requiring iron-clad political will and a great deal of investment.

Ahmad said that of the 18 constructed fuel stations that provide gas fuel, only four were still operational. They are on Jl. Sumenep in Menteng, Central Jakarta; in the Semanggi area in Central Jakarta; in Tebet, South Jakarta; and on Jl. D.I. Panjaitan in Cawang, East Jakarta.

"And those four use old technology that takes at least 15 minutes to fill up the tank of a car, more for buses, making them very ineffective," he said.

However, if all public transportation vehicles used gas fuel, the level of pollution in the air could be reduced to about 35 percent for CO, 40 percent for NOx, 40 percent for hydrocarbons, and 45 percent for particulate matter.

"Only then, perhaps, can we increase the number of fresh air days by at least 35 percent, to three months or more," Ahmad said.