Polluters

Polluters

A step forward for the environmentalists with the announcement by the government of the names of the worst river polluting factories (The Jakarta Post, Dec. 30, 1995).

One idea to curb this type of pollution is to legislate to the effect that factories are obliged to draw their river water downstream of the point where they discharge their effluent so that they are the first recipients of their own discharge.

Unfortunately, I cannot claim the credit for this idea; it is one of the brain waves of Edward De Bono, the guru of lateral thought.

NICK FENTON

Jakarta