Silk-screen factory faulted for pollution
Silk-screen factory faulted for pollution
JAKARTA (JP): A delegation of Rawa Buaya residents, West
Jakarta, went to the City Council yesterday to protest the
operation of a silk-screen factory which allegedly pollutes the
nearby areas.
The 10-member delegation, representing 74 families of the Rawa
Buaya subdistrict, told the council's Commission D, which is in
charge of environmental affairs, that waste from the factory has
contaminated the local residents' wells.
The delegates said due to the high level of contamination,
local residents can no longer use water from their wells and are
forced to spend extra money to buy water for their daily
necessities.
They said that the factory frequently disposes of the waste in
the nearby river at night and on Fridays, when most local
residents are at the mosque. Part of the waste apparently seeps
into the ground and affects the groundwater, they said.
"We previously cleaned our wells once every two weeks, but now
we are forced to do it every two days," Muchtar, one of the
delegates, said.
Muchtar is convinced the contamination is caused by the
company because it is the only factory in operation in the area.
The delegates said the factory is located on Jl. Almakrifa in
Kelingkit of Rawa Buaya subdistrict, where the residents who are
mostly daily contract workers live, while the factory owner lives
outside the area.
"I strongly believe that the factory is illegal because it has
no name," Muchtar said, adding that it has been in operation
since December 1993.
He said that the case has been reported to the Rawa Buaya
subdistrict chief, the Cengkareng district chief, the Cengkareng
police office as well as the West Jakarta mayor. However, no
response has been made yet, he said.
"We cannot wait any longer for the real action of the
authority because the chemical pollution has forced us to buy
clean water for daily consumption," Achmad Syaiful, another
delegate, said.
Soetarman AMD, Arie Putra Bintana, Hotma Tambunan, Saud Rahman
and Bandjar Marpaung of the Commission D, who met the residents'
representatives yesterday, promised that they will mediate
between the residents and the owner of the factory. (32)