Jakarta closes Bantar Gebang dump site -- for real
Jakarta closes Bantar Gebang dump site -- for real
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After 17 years of using the Bantar Gebang dump site in Bekasi
municipality to dispose of its 6,000 tons of waste daily, Jakarta
began closing down the 104-hectare garbage dump on Sunday.
The decision was not made in order to appease the residents
living around the dump or the non-governmental organizations
worried about environmental damage, but because Jakarta did not
want to be "cornered" by Bekasi.
The order to close Bantar Gebang came from Jakarta Governor
Sutiyoso as the owner of the land located in Ciketing, Sumur Batu
and Cikiwul subdistricts.
"We are disappointed with statements made by Bekasi Deputy
Mayor (Mochtar Muhammad) where he always tries to corner us. We
don't want them to think that Jakarta is a loser (in any
negotiation)," Jakarta city spokesman, Muhayat, told The Jakarta
Post on Sunday.
Muhayat would not reveal which statements had angered the
Jakarta governor.
Mochtar, however, denied that his administration was trying to
"blackmail" Jakarta, by asking for Rp 85,000 (US$10) for each ton
of garbage dumped. He argued that the money would be used to
improve the waste management systems and to pay compensation to
around 12,000 families living in three subdistricts around the
dump.
"Ibu Sri from BPPT says the waste treatment cost is around Rp
120,000 and we're only asking for Rp 85,000. Is that so high?,"
he said, referring to Sri Bebassari, a waste management expert
from the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology
(BPPT).
Mochtar said, however, that his administration would accept
Jakarta's decision to close Bantar Gebang's doors.
"It's not a problem at all for us," he told the Post.
He said Bekasi still had its own 10-hectare dump in Sumur Batu
for its own 1,000 tons of daily waste.
Should Jakarta bow to Bekasi's demand, it would have to pay Rp
186 billion this year, far from the proposed amount of Rp 25
billion.
The demand was turned down by Jakarta's assistant to the city
secretary for development affairs, Irzal Djamal, who said that it
was not stated in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by
the two administrations. The agreement only made it clear that
Bekasi would take over the management of the waste.
The contract to use the dump expired on Dec. 31.
Even though the MOU had been signed, Jakarta's trucks could
not dump the trash, because the entrance was blocked by local
protesters who were disappointed with the Bekasi administration's
decision. The locals demanded that Bekasi close down the dump,
because it had damaged the environment and endangered public
health.
Nevertheless, after Bekasi administration promised to pay Rp
50,000 a month to each of the 700 families in the area, were the
protesters willing to allow the trucks to enter.
Meanwhile, the trash has also begun to pile up in many areas
of the capital, along with the distinctive, putrid smell of
rotting garbage.
Muhayat claimed yet again that the administration had prepared
four other dump sites, mostly located in North Jakarta, to
accommodate the capital's daily waste. He refused to name the
exact places or whether there was special technology being used
to process the waste.