Residents rail against project's pollution, noise

JAKARTA (JP): Residents of the Bendungan Hilir subdistrict in Central Jakarta are objecting to the pollution emanating from construction work on the upbeat Park Royale apartment complex being developed by PT Sari Lembah Hijau.

The residents lodged their protest with the city' agency for the supervision of development projects, saying that the construction work was too noisy and was generating excessive air pollution.

"The company is carrying on the construction work 24 hours a day, causing noise. And this is disturbing the residents. Besides, the piling work shakes our houses continuously," Rio Tambunan, one of the residents, told reporters yesterday.

He added that the dust from the project was polluting the air in the neighborhood to such an extent that residents were having difficulty keeping their houses clean.

Rio said the residents were also worried about the possibility of an accident because the arm of the project's giant crane was operating above the residential area.

Since the project began, Rio said, wells in the area have been drying up and the quality of the water has deteriorated so much that it can no longer be used.

The residents also complained about both the quantity and quality of water supplied by PAM Jaya, the city-owned water company. The developer provided PAM water to alleviate the effects of the project on the water supply.

"The quality and quantity of water supplied by the company is too low. Besides, the pipe system is not permanently installed," Rio said. He added that, since the project began, the residents have not been able to receive television transmission clearly.

The residents also complained that the fences erected around the building site had narrowed Jl. Bendungan Taman Asahan and that many of the project's vehicles parked in the street, adding to traffic congestion.

About 55 families live immediately behind the site of the project, which is not due to be completed until 1997.

Meanwhile, the company's public relations manager Rudy Sumoprawiro said that the project had obtained all the requisite permits from the city agency which supervises development projects.

"The company has all the permits needed for the project, so it is a legal activity, but we intend to settle the problem through talks sponsored by the agency," he said.

He refused to comment further on the protest, saying that the matter was being handled by the agency and that it would be better for the parties to settle the matter in that forum.

An official of the agency said that the office had already received similar complaints from the residents and had already asked its Central Jakarta branch to attend to the problem.

"The office has invited both parties to solve the problem. The talks will take place on Friday (this week)," said Darmaji, of the agency's Central Jakarta branch.(yns)