Lippo Karawaci admits disposing of household, hospital waste in river
Lippo Karawaci admits disposing of household, hospital waste in river
Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang
The Lippo Karawaci Town Development Management (TMD) company
admitted that it was disposing of household and hospital waste
into the Sabi River but insisted that the waste had been treated
and was environmentally safe.
TMD Manager Wahyudi told several Tangerang regional
councillors on Wednesday that household waste produced by Lippo
Town residents and Siloam Gleneagles Hospital waste was dumped
into the Sabi River in Tangerang after it was first treated in
the compound.
The councillors were accompanied by head of the Tangerang
environmental management agency Didin Samsudin. They conducted a
field trip to Lippo Karawaci's Rp 3 billion (US$330,000) waste
treatment plant.
Lippo environmental sanitation and waste treatment facility
head Camelia Retno said just a small part of the treated waste
was dumped into the Sabi river because most of the liquid waste
was used to water plants in the housing complex's parks.
"During the rainy season, there is usually an increase in
waste water volume but on average we process some 4,000 cubic
meters of waste daily," Retno said.
Bayu Murdani, council deputy speaker who led the investigative
team, said he had taken samples of the treated waste water to be
examined at the Central Facility for Environmental Impact
Analyses Control (Pusarpedal).
"We shouldn't just believe Lippo's claims at face value, and
this is why we took some samples to be examined to determine
whether the waste is really safe for the environment," he said on
Thursday.
Meanwhile, Kurtubi Su'ud, chairman of the Council Commission D
for environmental issues said that councillors conducted a survey
of Lippo's waste treatment facilities following reports that the
company had yet to obtain permits for its waste treatment
facility.
Bylaw No. 15/2004 on Waste Water Disposal Permit stipulates
that all waste treatment facilities operated by industrial firms
and housing estates must obtain permits from the administration.
TMD had applied for a permit soon after the media reports of
its violation were published last month.
"We have given a permit for Lippo's treatment facility but the
permit did not allow B3 waste of the Siloam Gleneagles Hospital
to be treated in the facility," Cecep Suhendar, of the
environment management agency told the Post.
He added that Siloam Gleneagles Hospital had yet to submit
environmental impact analyses (Amdal) document to the agency
although a new building for the hospital expansion had already
been completed.
"Government Regulation (PP) No. 27 on Environmental Impact
Analysis clearly stipulates that an Amdal document must be
submitted to the agency before the management starts the
construction," he said.