Dump closure not necessary: Minister

Dump closure not necessary: Minister

INDONESIA: State Minister of the Environment Rachmat Witoelar
said that the Leuwigajah dump in Cimahi would not have to be
closed if people living in the surrounding area could be
relocated.

"I've heard that the local people want to be relocated. If
it's true, then why should the dump be closed," asked the
minister on Saturday, during a visit to the dump and landslide-
affected areas in Bandung.

Mountains of garbage in the 25-hectare dump collapsed on Feb.
21, flattening 70 houses below. As of Saturday, 131 bodies had
been recovered from the disaster site out of a reported 143
people buried in the slide.

Rachmat said the disaster should teach people a lesson about
the need to conduct an environmental impact analysis for every
project. -- JP