Rubble trouble in Batam

Rubble trouble in Batam

BATAM, Riau: The Batam municipal administration must find a way to dispose of 30 tons of rubble every day, following the destruction of 1,000 illegally constructed houses and 500 kiosks in the island's Jodoh subdistrict.

Edeng Rahmat, the head of the Batam sanitation agency, said on Friday the destruction of the houses and kiosks had resulted in heaps of rubble, causing the volume of trash in Batam to double to 400 tons daily.

"It's been four days and we haven't finished removing the wood from the houses and kiosks because our trucks are being used to transport household and industrial waste," he said.

It is estimated that there are currently 65,000 illegally built houses in Batam, including those constructed in the conservation forest and along the city's sidewalks. --Antara