Switch to lead-free gas a breath of fresh air
Switch to lead-free gas a breath of fresh air
By Danis Purwono
JAKARTA (JP): Jakartans can now breathe lead-free air thanks
to the phasing out of leaded gasoline across the city, a
development which began last month.
The move, however, does not necessarily mean the hazardous
substance will disappear within a short time.
Deputy head of the Environmental Impact Management Agency
(Bapedal)'s pollution control, Isa Karmisa, estimated that it
would take about five to six years to get rid of the pollutant
from lead-covered pipes and oil-refining tanks.
His office is now studying the impact of phasing out leaded
gasoline on people by collecting blood samples from students in
Jakarta before and after unleaded gasoline was introduced in
July.
"The blood samples were taken from 400 students from various
locations exposed to pollution emitted from motorized vehicles.
We also studied lead levels in vegetables grown in the city," Isa
said. The result of the study is scheduled to be publicized in
September.
As Jakarta's air is now free from lead, it does not
automatically mean people are breathing clean air, free from
pollution.
There are still other pollutants that need our attention, such
as carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrocarbon (HC),
nitrogen oxide (NOX) and dust or total suspended particles (TSP),
which are all emitted from motorized vehicles.
According to the city police's recent data, 27 percent of
these pollutants -- no less hazardous than lead -- came from
private cars, 48 percent from motorcycles, and 11 percent from
buses.
Technically, car engines made in 1985 onward are still capable
of using unleaded gasoline. Those manufactured before 1985 are
also compatible -- as long as the engines remain in good shape
and do not exceed a speed of 100 km per hour.
The pollutants are caused by the accumulation of deposits
within the engine, causing improper combustion and lower engine
performance and efficiency.
Fuel expert Purwosutrisno Sudarmadi explained that gasoline in
Indonesia still has high aromatic and olefin levels. These two
unsaturated hydrocarbons are reactive and produce deposits from
oxidation and polymerization.
Right time
The move, long awaited, came at the right time and was warmly
greeted by environmental activists and even the automotive
industry, such as PT Astra International Tbk.
"But we need the government to guarantee a reliable supply of
unleaded gasoline. This is related to our investment...," said
the company's head of the environmental health and safety
division, Edhie Sarwono.
It is feared that the plan to completely rid leaded gasoline
will be hampered by the lack of funds needed to build more
facilities to produce unleaded gasoline. The preparation is
estimated to take about two and a half years.
"The lack of funds can't be used as an excuse. We have enjoyed
a hike in the world crude oil price. Its export value between
October and December 1999 was at Rp 12 trillion while building
facilities to produce unleaded gasoline only required US$230
million," said Ahmad Safrudin, coordinator of the nongovernmental
organization, the Committee for Leaded Fuel Eradication.
Before leaded gasoline was phased out, the level of air
pollution in the city was unbelievably high, which might be
responsible for Jakarta's rank as the third most polluted city in
the world after Mexico and Bangkok.
The phasing out of leaded gasoline, however, did not come
smoothly, despite the fact that in some areas, even at
residential complexes, lead pollution was recorded at an average
of 1.8 micrograms per cubic meter -- far higher than the standard
average set by Bapedal of 1.0 microgram per cubic meter.
Pressure was mounting for the government to stop the use of
leaded gasoline as various studies have shown that it adversely
affects one's neurosystem, brain, heart, respiratory system,
digestion, reproductive system and kidneys. Ten micrograms of
lead in the blood can also reportedly lower a child's IQ by 2.5
points.
A recent study by the World Bank, for instance, puts social
and health costs, resulting from air pollution in the city, at Rp
830 billion. The International Monetary Fund was among other
organizations that also pushed the government to convert to clean
energy.
Despite pressure, the country still remains slow in adopting
clean energy. Other countries started phasing out leaded gasoline
some years ago. Manila, the capital of the Philippines, for
instance, began phasing out leaded gasoline in 1993.
Here, unleaded gasoline has been introduced in stages.
In Greater Jakarta, unleaded gasoline -- bearing the logos
Premium TT and Premix TT, short for tanpa timbal or unleaded --
was distributed to gas stations starting July 1. Both Premium TT
and Premix TT are reported available in all gas stations by early
August.
In other provinces in Java, leaded gasoline will be phased out
in 2002 and if everything goes as planned, across the entire
nation by October, 2003.
The government finally decided to subsidize unleaded gasoline
so that the fuel price would remain the same at Rp 1,450 per
liter for premium gasoline and Rp 1,900 per liter for premix.
Some Rp 300 billion has also been allocated as a year-long
subsidy, which involves importing High Octane Mogas Component
(HOMC), the lead substitute. Currently, Indonesia is unable to
produce it.
Some 12,000 barrels of HOMC is needed every day to produce
8,000 kiloliters of premium and premix to meet the capital's
daily consumption of gasoline.
Unleaded gasoline is produced at state oil and gas company
Pertamina's refinery in Balongan, West Java, whose output can
amount to 125,000 barrels of fuel every day.