Jamboree causes environmental damage
PURWOKERTO, Central Java (JP): Environmental activists, grouped in the Dynamic Forum for Nature Lovers (Fordik), blamed the National Scout Jamboree 2001 on Friday for causing major environmental damages to the 14-hectare Baturraden tourist resort.
The group, in its statement, also urged the committee of the National Scout Jamboree 2001 to immediately restore the condition of the resort, which was used as the camping ground during the ten-day gathering.
"We demand that the National Jamboree committee take responsibility for the environmental damage and demand that they immediately take action to rehabilitate the environment here," the group said in its statement made available to The Jakarta Post.
The group consisted of university nature groups in Purwokerto and other environmental non-governmental organizations.
In its statement, Fordik said that many trees had been felled to clear the ground for the scouts to erect their tents.
The group estimated that each jamboree participant created three liters of garbage daily, and with the total number of participants being 10,700, at least 288,900 liters or 288.9 cubic meters of garbage had been generated during the nine-day jamboree.
"The amount of garbage created was not countered by an equivalent number of garbage bins as the jamboree committee only provided 33 garbage containers, with each can being able to hold one cubic meter of garbage," Fordik said.
The group also regretted the sanitation arrangements which they claimed were "unable to hold the amount of human feces produced by the jamboree participants."
The jamboree committee had excavated a total of 400 two-meter- deep septic tanks at the camping ground, with the interior of each being plastered.
It was estimated that around 47,376 kilograms of human feces were produced everyday, an amount that could not be easily absorbed by the soil due to the thick concrete used in the construction of the septic tanks.
"We are afraid the septic tanks will overflow and the unabsorbed feces will pollute watercourses," he said.
The jamboree was officially closed on Wednesday by Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri and two days after the closing ceremony, rubbish and the remains of tents are still to be seen littering the campsite.
When asked to comment, the chairman of the committee's general affairs section, Bambang Priyono, said the committee would take full responsibility for the negative environmental impacts of the national scout gathering.
"To restore the environment is our top priority. We have scheduled cleaning and rehabilitation activities for the next three months," Bambang told the Post.
Meanwhile after the jamboree was closed, dozens of prostitutes were seen resuming their activities in the tourist resort. During the 10-day national gathering, they were driven out of the resort by security personnel.
"Not all of us have returned here. Maybe there's around 20 of us," one of the prostitutes said.
A broker said that,"The pimps will hold a meeting on Saturday at Pring Sewu restaurant to discuss the business prospects." (45/emf)