Residents hail new waste processor

Residents hail new waste processor

Theresia Sufa, Bogor

Residents living in the vicinity of Galuga dump in Kampung
Lalamping, Bogor regency, said the dump's new processing system
had eliminated the environmental and health problems from
unprocessed waste they had suffered four years ago.

"It's much better now ... no more annoying stench and flies,
no more cases of piles of waste collapsing and burying a house,"
said Odah, 39.

The condition of the dump observed on Wednesday by The Jakarta
Post was far different than in 2002, when the 9.5 hectare dump
was filled with great mounds of garbage, and liquid from
unprocessed waste seeped into and contaminated local wells.

Owned by the Bogor municipal administration, the dump is also
used by the Bogor regental administration. The municipality pays
Rp 7 million (US$786) in monthly fees to the regency for use of
the land.

Every day, 117 garbage trucks haul some 1,300 tons of waste
from the districts of Bogor, Leuwiliang, Ciomas, Darmaga, Ciawi
and Puncak.

About 300 scavengers live around the dump and separate organic
waste from inorganic waste for composting and resale as
recyclables.

"I collect about 30 kilograms of plastic garbage every day,
which I sell for Rp 10,000," scavenger Warniti, 35, told the
Post.

According to the municipal dump supervisor, Yulman, the office
of the State Minister for the Environment was involved in tidying
up the dump, hiring consultants from Australia and Japan for the
project.

"The project is not cheap ... now we're installing a
processing system to ensure that the liquid from the garbage is
safe enough to be dumped into the river," Yulman told the Post.

The Bogor sanitation agency had also built a water pump to
provide clean water for nearby residents.

"We want Galuga dump to become the model of environmentally
friendly waste management for other dumps in the country," Yulman
added.