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.