Garbage smell haunts Surabaya

Garbage smell haunts Surabaya

SURABAYA: Residents living around the new garbage final dump site in Benowo have been complaining about the stink, as the sanitation workers have not sprayed the garbage with chemicals as they did before.

Several residents said that the heap of garbage on the 25- hectare site could be smelt from 500 meters away.

"At first, workers from the sanitary agency sprayed chemicals on the garbage heap. There was no smell at all at that time," said Achyar, a Benowo resident.

But lately no chemicals have been sprayed and the rotten garbage has started to smell.

The final dump site in Benowo was opened following the closure of the old one in Keputih. Keputih residents had complained about the mayoralty's failure to keep its word to provide the Keputih residents with public health centers and street illumination.

Deputy mayor Bambang Dwi Hartono acknowledged the Benowo residents' complaint, promising to settle the problems properly.

"The Benowo final dump site has yet to be completed. We will settle the problem soon," he said.

Head of the Surabaya sanitation agency Ismanu had earlier said that the Benowo dump site project would be completed in April 2002. --Antara