River water quality still deteriorating

River water quality still deteriorating

JAKARTA (JP): The quality of the city's river water is
deteriorating as a result of the dumping of household and
industrial waste, a city official said yesterday

Prawoto S. Danoemihardjo, the city secretary's assistant in
charge of development administration, said that the deterioration
of the water quality was mainly caused by liquid household waste,
the major pollutant of Jakarta's rivers.

He said that the river water pollution is related to, among
other causes, the uncontrolled growth of slum areas along the
city's riverbanks.

Data collected last year shows that biological oxygen demand
(BOD) level in the Citarum River fluctuated between 5.2 and 31
milligrams per liter, while the river's chemical oxygen demand
(COD) level was between 233 and 267 milligrams per liter. The
tolerable limit is 17.6 milligrams for BOD and 35.21 milligrams
for COD.

The Citarum River flows from West Java's Jatiluhur dam to
Jakarta through many open canals which are used as dumping sites
by residents.

The city administration has carried out a number of programs
aimed at reducing the various forms of pollution afflicting the
city's rivers, Prawoto said. However, "the water pollution still
occurs," he added.

He acknowledged that the city administration still lacks the
human resources, the environmental technology and the funds
needed to solve the problem of river pollution. "We hope that the
situation will, step by step, be improved," he said.

Prawoto was speaking at the opening of a one-day course on
river water pollution.

The course was participated in by 15 government officials 135
representatives of hotels and hospitals.

Prawoto urged the officials and the industrial representatives
to dispose of liquid waste correctly and to uphold environmental
laws.

He said that coordination between central government offices
and the city administration is badly needed in efforts to improve
the environment.(32)