Ministry of Environment Collects Water Samples from Pesticide-Contaminated River in South Tangerang, Activated Carbon Deployed

Jakarta - The Ministry of Environment (KLH) has collected water samples from the Cisadane River, which was contaminated by pesticides following a warehouse fire at PT Biotek Saranatama in South Tangerang. The water samples will be analyzed in a laboratory.

“The Ministry of Environment has already collected samples several times,” Deputy Minister of Environment Diaz Hendropriyono said when contacted on Sunday (15/2/2026).

The water samples have been sent to the Ministry’s Environmental Control Facilities Center (Pusarpedal) for testing. Additional sampling will be conducted from upstream to downstream for analysis.

“The plan is on February 15 (Sunday), we will collect samples again from the Jaletreng River, the Cisadane River, and the downstream section all the way to Teluknaga, to assess the intensity of contamination,” he said.

Separately, South Tangerang Communications and Information Agency Head TB Asep Nurdin said his office together with relevant agencies have been spreading activated carbon into the Jaletreng River. This is intended to bind remaining chemical residue and prevent hazardous particles from being carried by the current.

“The City Government together with relevant agencies has deployed activated carbon into the Jaletreng River as an emergency measure. The purpose is to bind remaining chemical residue, accelerate the stabilization process of contaminants in the water, and serve as a preventive measure so that hazardous particles are not carried further by water flow or rain,” he explained.

Asep also urged the public not to fish or consume fish from the river to prevent poisoning. His office is still carrying out various recovery measures.

“For residents who feel uncomfortable or have complaints, medical examination services are available at community health centers and health posts. We continue to collect environmental and health data as a basis for decision-making on next steps,” he said.

Previously, the pesticide factory located in Setu District, South Tangerang, caught fire on Monday (9/2). Firefighters even had to use two truckloads of sand to extinguish the fire originating from chemical materials. The fire was only extinguished after seven hours of response efforts.

Ministry of Environment to File Lawsuit

The fire at the PT Biotek Saranatama warehouse has had far-reaching consequences after pesticide liquid flowed into the Jaletreng River, a tributary of the Cisadane, in South Tangerang. Environment Minister Faisol Hanif Nurofiq will sue the warehouse operators because the pesticides contaminated the river.

“Then from the civil side, we will take action as stipulated in Articles 87 and 90 of Law Number 32 of 2009. This will likely be a long story because this water flows from the Jaletreng River until it meets the Cisadane River, approximately 9 kilometers,” Faisol Hanif Nurofiq said in Setu, South Tangerang, on Friday (13/2/2026).

Hanif explained that the contamination has now reached the Teluknaga area in Tangerang Regency. He cited the polluter pays principle as the basis for suing the polluting party.

“Then the Cisadane all the way to Teluknaga is perhaps tens of kilometers exposed to this condition. As the polluter pays principle dictates, all polluters are obligated to carry out remediation, take responsibility for environmental damages, and undertake recovery efforts,” he said.

Hanif affirmed that both the warehouse complex operator and the warehouse tenant will be named as defendants.

“Both of them—the operator and the tenant—both,” he said.