People cannot live without water. Unfortunately, most water in

People cannot live without water. Unfortunately, most water in
the city is contaminated by hazardous substances and pathogens.
As a result, many people are forced to spend money to buy potable
water, adding yet another financial burden to the majority of
city residents.

Rizka, 27, a housewife who resides in Kebon Jeruk, West
Jakarta with her husband. She moved from Magetan, East Jakarta
two years ago:

I wonder which parts of Jakarta are free from water pollution.
Water in almost all areas in the city is severely contaminated, I
guess.

Despite the fact that my residence is far from industrial
areas, the dense population with its untreated human waste should
be blamed for some of the contamination. It appears that there is
no space between the residences' septic tanks and the artesian
wells.

I think the ground water in my house is also affected. I once
cooked using the local ground water but the water turned to be
brownish and a bit smelly.

Since then, I decided to use mineral water for cooking and
drinking. Luckily, my family only consumes more or less six
bottles of water that cost about Rp 50,000 a month.

That's better rather than consuming unhealthy water.

Ratno, 44, an elementary school teacher in Pluit and Kalibaru,
North Jakarta. He has been residing in Semper, North Jakarta for
24 years with his wife and two children. He comes from Muntilan,
Central Java:

The groundwater in my place is not potable at all. We dug an
artesian well, but the water is salty and brackish.

My family uses the brackish ground water for washing and
bathing only when the water provided by the city-owned water
company is disrupted.

The tap water is well distributed only at night and badly
disrupted at noon. So, I have to fill my water reservoir for a
three-day supply in case of severe disruption.

I should spare my monthly spending for 16 gallons of mineral
water for drinking. I used to spend Rp 112,000 per month to buy
the mineral water. But now it costs me only Rp 40,000 a month
since I could have the empty containers refilled at a lower cost.

In addition, I have to pay around Rp 75,000 for the tap water
monthly bill to the city-owned water company.

Eddy, 46, a civil servant who has lived in Pondok Gede,
Bekasi, for 12 years with his wife and two children:

My residence is located at a lower ground level compared to
the surrounding neighborhood. Geographically, the bowl-like
ground structure has made the ground water prone to pollution
from the higher areas.

Indeed, the quality of the ground water at my house is not
good despite its clean physical appearance but it smells like
corroded substance. In fear of lead contamination, I decided not
to consume the water for drinking and cooking.

But I still use it for washing and bathing. For cooking, my
wife buys clean water namely 'Bogor water' that costs Rp 2,000
per plastic container. My wife usually needs around 10 containers
per month.

Meanwhile, I purchase extra bottled mineral water which costs
me some Rp 127,000 a month. We consume three bottles or 19 liters
of mineral water every week.

Like it or not, water is costly in the city.

-- Leo Wahyudi S