Malang City Government Investigates Cause of Discolouration in Brantas River
Malang, East Java — The Malang City Government in East Java is conducting an investigation to determine the cause of the purple discolouration of the water in the Brantas River, specifically in the Mergosono area, Kedungkandang District, to ascertain whether it was caused by industrial waste or other factors.
Malang Mayor Wahyu Hidayat stated in Malang on Wednesday night that the administration will first coordinate with the local Environmental Agency (DLH) to obtain detailed data regarding the incident.
“We will review the data related to this incident to see whether the problem—the change in water colour—is due to waste or other factors. I will follow up with the DLH,” said Wahatu.
Wahyu emphasised that if the results of the investigation and fact-finding indicate violations regarding waste disposal by a company, the local government will not hesitate to impose sanctions, including the revocation of permits and business closures.
He stated that waste must not be discharged directly without undergoing a series of treatment processes, as it can cause environmental pollution, including in river systems.
Furthermore, he noted that even if a business line possesses a wastewater treatment plant, the system or facilities must be verified to ensure that the treated output is safe for discharge.
“There must be an analysis regarding the environmental impact, or AMDAL (Environmental Impact Assessment). Therefore, it is not enough to simply have a treatment plant; there must be an assessment from the AMDAL commission confirming that the discharge is safe,” he added.
In a separate confirmation, the Head of the Corporate Communications and General Sub-Division of Perum Jasa Tirta (PJT) I, Ivania Aestrianingsih, stated that their team, alongside the Malang City Environmental Agency and local sub-district leadership (muspika), has visited the site to conduct an inspection.
However, they cannot immediately confirm the cause of the incident, as determining the specific substances causing the discolouration in the Brantas River requires laboratory test results.
“We cannot yet confirm whether it contains waste or not, until the laboratory results are released,” said Ivania.
She noted that the river water is currently no longer purple and no pungent odour is detectable. The official laboratory results will be published by the Environmental Agency once all testing is complete.