Dead fish in Ancol 'a natural occurance'

Damar Harsanto , Jakarta

Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso announced on Friday the results of lab tests performed on dead fish that washed up on beaches in Ancol, North Jakarta, over the past several weeks, saying the deaths were a natural phenomenon.

Citing the findings of scientists at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the governor said an increased algae population had absorbed the oxygen in the seawater, killing fish and clams.

"The so-called red tide is a natural occurrence when there is a lot of rain followed by hot weather ... ," Sutiyoso said in Muara Angke, North Jakarta.

The governor made the announcement during an event called "Eating Seafood Together", which was held to convince residents that it was safe to eat seafood. The event was similar to those held in several countries during the bird flu scare.

Displaying a satellite photo, Sutiyoso said the area affected by the red tide stretched along the coastline from Kamal beach to Karnaval beach, about 50 square kilometers.

In addition to LIPI, the Jakarta Environmental Management Agency (BPLHD), the Jakarta Animal Husbandry Agency, the Jakarta Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Agency and the Bogor Agriculture Institute have also analyzed fish from Ancol. The results of their tests also seem to point to the role of algae in the deaths of the fish.

BPLHD head Kosasih Wirahadikusumah, who accompanied Sutiyoso to the event, corrected an earlier statement that the algae that killed the fish and clams was toxic.

"The algae we discovered in the seawater was non-toxic," he said.

Kosasih told City Council Commission D on development affairs on Tuesday that the agency had discovered a "neurotoxic substance" that killed the fish, but that it had only affected their "gills and belly".

The BPLHD has already retracted its warning to the public not to eat seafood following the discovery of the dead fish at Karnaval beach in the Ancol Dreamland Park on May 7. Its warning had a damaging impact on fishermen, who said fish prices dropped by up to 50 percent as a result.

Non-governmental organization Indonesian Forum for the Environment has voiced suspicion that the fish and clams were being killed by high levels of pollution in Jakarta Bay. The organization has alleged that industrial plants located in the area dump unprocessed waste into the bay.

A number of city councillors also raised concern that the fish were dying because of industrial waste being dumped into the bay by nearby plants, questioning why the red tide was not occurring in other coastal areas in the country.