Karawang to be site of new dump
Damar Harsanto, Jakarta
Jakarta will have another place to off-load its garbage this year, a 70-hectare dump in Rengasdengklok, Karawang regency, West Java, which is located some 70 kilometers to the east of the capital.
Assistant to the City Secretary for Development Affairs IGKG Suena said on Friday, the city administration had approved the proposal submitted by private company PT Cikelor Mandiri to use the site as a dump.
"Governor (Sutiyoso) approved the proposal. We told the company to make all the necessary arrangements with the Karawang administration, including to carry out an environmental-impact analysis there," he said at City Hall.
Citing a recent report from the company, Suena claimed that locals around the area, where an industrial plant was formerly located, had agreed to the plan.
The area is owned by PT Cikelor Mandiri.
Suena said the company would provide a waste transportation service between Rengasdengklok and Jakarta, as well as the land for the dump.
He said the company had promised to provide closed dump trucks so that a "putrid smell" would not be emitted during transportation.
"The tipping fee would be Rp 53,000 (US$5.7) per ton. The company says a minimum of 1,500 tons of waste dumped daily would cover its operational costs," he added.
The Karawang dump would alleviate the Jakarta administration's chronic problem of disposing of its 6,000 tons of daily waste. Most of the waste is dumped at Bantar Gebang in Bekasi municipality.
People living around Bantar Gebang have demanded the closure of the dump, citing environmental damage to the surrounding area and health problems suffered by residents as reasons.
Jakarta was briefly forced to find an alternative dump following Bekasi councillors' objections to the use of Bantar Gebang. They demanded that Jakarta abide by a previous agreement that the dump would be closed by Dec. 31, 2003.
The capital was left with very few options and dumped its waste on an open field in Cilincing, North Jakarta. Local fish farmers said pollution from that dump killed thousands of their fish and shrimps. Jakarta administration financially compensated the farmers.
Later, Jakarta and Bekasi agreed to reopen Bantar Gebang dump, with Bekasi required to compensate nearby residents.
Jakarta has also been preparing a waste treatment facility in Klapanunggal, Bogor. The facility, using German bale-press technology, can accommodate a maximum of 2,500 tons of waste per day. The plant is not operating at present due to financial constraints.