Fishermen worry about losing income, not pollution

By Sirikit Syah

SURABAYA (JP): The fishing communities of Kenjeran and Keputih districts here are facing dire health risks from the highest contamination of heavy metals in the world.

"We used to sell up to 500 kilos of fish a day; people would wait for us on the beach," fisherman Mohammad said. "Now, we're lucky if we can sell around 100 kilos a day. And nobody waits for us now."

Kenjeran to the east of Surabaya is one of East Java's prime tourist spots, famous for local delicacies like kupang lontong (steamed rice sticks and clams) and sate kerang (sauteed shellfish). This is where people buy directly from the fishermen. Once reports of contamination hit the press earlier this year sales dropped dramatically.

Yajid, a local youth who used to catch shellfish and sell them to nearby restaurants, is facing a hard time as well. He used to earn Rp 50,000 (US$21) a day from his catch, at about Rp 7,000 per kg. Today he makes considerably less.

Hariah, who sells kupang lontong and sate kerang, said she makes less and less every day. She used to sell about 10 kilos of clams and shellfish in three days. It's no longer that much anymore, and the small food market where she sells her food is often empty now.

Fishermen trying to sell their catch in Pabean, the biggest fish market in Surabaya, also complain that people are avoiding fish these days. "This is bad for our business," one said.

Three local researchers -- Suharno Pikir, Anwar Daud and Atiek Moesriyati -- found that the beaches of Kenjeran and Keputih are home to the worst heavy metal contamination in the world.

Suharno Pikir of Airlangga University revealed in 1993 that samples of mud taken from Keputih contained 1.485 parts per million (ppm) of mercury, while those from Kenjeran had 0.605 ppm. The mercury contamination in Southampton, England -- once said to be world's highest -- in comparison, ranged between 0.18 to 0.57 ppm.

Daud Anwar, who continued Suharno's research after the latter died, found early symptoms of Minamata (a pollution-related sickness once suffered by people of Minamata Bay in Japan) among residents who consume fish and clams daily.

According to Kompas, Daud's study found 44 residents complaining of headaches, fever, pain, loss of appetite, and overall listlessness. He also found some neurological disorders.

"With such high levels of contamination, the fish and shellfish from the eastern shore of Surabaya are not fit to eat," Daud said.

Increasing

The most recent research was conducted in 1995 by Atiek Moesriyati from the November 10 Institute of Technology in Surabaya (ITS). She studied the contamination of fish, shrimps, shellfish and residents' blood. She found even higher contamination than that recorded by her two predecessors.

Atiek declined to be specific about the level of contamination, but insisted that it has been increasing for the past two years.

Kompas last month quoted H. Agus Syamsuddin, the head of the East Java provincial office of the environment, as saying that the studies should be examined in more detail. He admitted that currently, there are 26 factories dumping their waste into the Surabaya River on a daily basis.

"But the waste is processed first," he insisted.

Atiek said she had submitted her findings to the local office of the Ministry of Health, the Surabaya mayoralty and her university.

"I don't know what has been done so far to follow up. If anything has been done, I certainly don't know about it," she said.

She acknowledged that residents may not feel anything amiss yet, but said that health problems due to pollution often take years to emerge. People in Minamata showed symptoms some 30 years after the pollution took place.

One chemical factory in Canada buried its waste in the 1940s in Luff Canal near the Niagara Falls; some 30 years later, the farmers and their children started to suffer from skin diseases. When examined, the residents' bodies showed contamination by heavy metals.

Atiek pointed out that elements of heavy metals such as mercury and lead remain in the liver and kidneys.

"These elements cannot be destroyed. They are absorbed. They cannot be washed out of the body through urine or sweat. They will become toxic -- fatal," Atiek said.

Atiek warned that mercury affects the metabolism and the reproductive system. Even if nobody seems affected today, future children may have to suffer instead, she said.