Residents complain of sewage disposal

Residents complain of sewage disposal

Multa Fidrus
The Jakarta Post
Tangerang

When people call the environmental agency to pump out the
contents of their septic tanks, many do not realize that the
truck drivers dump the untreated sewage in canals and rivers
crossing Tangerang city.

This occurrence was witnessed by The Jakarta Post over the
weekend when drivers from both Tangerang regency and municipal
environmental agencies dumped raw sewage into the Sipon canal on
Jl. TMP Taruna, Tangerang, although there was an announcement
board banning the dumping of sewage in the river.

The practice is incongruous considering that the duty of both
agencies is to maintain the environment and to prevent damage to
and pollution of the environment as stipulated in Bylaw No.
20/2000 on the environment.

One of the drivers, told the Post that they usually carried
the waste to a 40,000-square-meter household waste treatment site
that has eight oxidation ponds in Perumnas Karawaci.

"Since the road access to the site is damaged, drivers are
reluctant to go there and instead have opted to dispose of the
sewage here," he said.

The Tangerang municipal agency chief, Maryoso, could not be
reached for comment. His staff said Maryoso rarely came to the
office.

Truck drivers started their dumping activities at 8 a.m. and
ended at 3 p.m. The sewage was transported by yellow trucks
belonging to both agencies.

Trucks appeared from the direction of Jl. LP Pemuda and Jl.
TMP Taruna. The drivers then parked their trucks by the canal
bank under a shady tree. Both the driver and his assistant then
pulled out a pipe and directed it into the 1.5 meter wide canal.

A few minutes later, the sewage was piped into the canal which
quickly turned dark.

Pedestrians, who pass the site popularly known as the Portal
area near the Tangerang Youth Penitentiary, must cover their
noses due to the terrible odor from the sewage.

When the Post approached the site, several men scrambled to
offer sewage disposal services, asking: "Do you want to have your
septic tank cleaned?".

Madsuni, a 56-year-old resident who lives near the site, said
at least 15 trucks dump sewage into the canal every day.

"One truck usually dumps sewage three times a day. If there
are 15 trucks on average, dumping sewage three times a day, the
canal that flows into the Cisadane river must accommodate sewage
from 45 trucks per day," he said.

"I think the waste disposal into the canal is potentially
damaging to the environment and has polluted the Cisadane river
from which the Tangerang tap water company (PDAM) take water for
household consumption."

Madsuni, who could not recall how long the dumping had taken
place, has called on the agencies, along with other residents, to
stop sewage dumping.

For Acang, a 45-year-old food vendor near the site, the odor
resulting from the dumping is an annoyance to him and his
customers.

"The bad odor can even stick to your clothes. If you don't
believe me, go and stand there for five minutes. Your clothes
will stink," he said.

"I don't understand why the agencies dump sewage into the
river. My business here is disturbed by the smell and the dumping
but I cannot do anything to stop them."