Refineries vs. health

Refineries vs. health

Perfect timing! Last week the government revived the
nationwide campaign for the use of unleaded gasoline -- revived,
because like so many other things, the campaign had petered out
with little progress toward its target of completely phasing out
the use of leaded gasoline by the end of the year.

The timing was interesting indeed, because a group assigning
itself to oversee it was just about to sue the Ministry of Energy
and Mineral Resources "for ignoring its own decree" issued in
1999 about the gradual end to leaded gas.

Too much sarcasm can be as unhealthy as the air we breathe;
but it is doubtful that the lead accumulated over the years has
affected the sensibilities of our authorities and experts so much
that Indonesia's cities are still plodding their way out of these
toxic fumes, over 30 long years since the dangers of lead in the
air were exposed and confirmed by scientific studies.

Study after study has shown us how unseen emissions (lead in
the air we breathe is largely blamed on vehicle emissions) are
harming ourselves and our children, not to mention the police
officers, bus drivers and others, who are exposed to hours of
toxins each day.

It causes irreversible damage to the kidney and liver, and
reduced brain development in children, but the State Ministry for
the Environment only has the power to "appeal" to suppliers,
particularly state-run oil and gas company Pertamina, "to make
this program a success."

While unleaded gas was first introduced in Jakarta in 1991,
the capital retains the top rank among the world's most polluted
cities. It has been difficult to attribute the shift to cleaner
fuel on the "natural" ability of people in wealthy countries to
understand the real danger; nor can we blame it on the economic
crisis of the late 1990s, as even in Southeast Asia we continue
to fall further behind neighbors whose governments display much
more care about their citizens' health.

From time to time, the city administration trumpets a "new"
announcement that vehicles over 10-years-old will no longer be
allowed on the streets; but even Governor Sutiyoso hasn't shown
his usual stubbornness in the face of protests.

So we're stuck in a rut -- the supply of unleaded gas, 14
years after it was first introduced here, remains only available
in Great Jakarta, parts Batam and Bali, while leaded gas must
still be available for old cars.

Meanwhile lessons abound on how to switch to cleaner fuel,
from the United States to neighboring Thailand. Experts have
shown many a minister that beyond the fears of high costs of
upgrading the refineries, there are billions of dollars to be
saved in medical costs for citizens who must breathe the lead.

An expert from the United Nations Environment Program cited in
this paper last week the World Bank's study of the United States'
experience since the 1970s; that "for every US$1 invested in the
phase-out effort, $10 was saved in medical costs and resulted in
increased productivity and environmental health."

The Committee for Leaded Fuel Phase-out, which earlier planned
to file the above mentioned lawsuit, has also cited studies
showing our willingness to spend over $100 million for health and
other related costs owing to polluted air in Bandung alone,
rather than invest in preventive measures for one of our most
congested cities.

There have however been small signs of progress: Thanks to the
campaign for unleaded gas, researchers say that in Jakarta
testing of blood samples of dozens of children in 2001 showed
decreasing levels of lead.

Taking proper care of our cars and giving up our old ones, to
a collectors' museum, is the sacrifice we need to make for own
health and that of our children.

As for the government, it has once again invited the repeated
criticism of the lack of political will. As in the past, the
ministry in charge of the environment has never been given a
portfolio; which might otherwise help it to push for concerted
efforts across the administration. Apart for waiting forever for
the adjustment of refineries, we might, with better policies, be
encouraged to use better public transportation, and discouraged
to buy more cars by imposing a progressive taxation scheme.

Then we would not see a feeble call from a government body
amounting to something like, "You're choking my son, could you
please stop?"