Tangerang, Bogor say no to city's gabage

Multa Fidrus and Theresia Sufa, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang/Bogor

Dozens of garbage trucks that had traveled from Jakarta to unload trash in Tangerang and Bogor were forced to return to the capital on Tuesday after encountering strong resistance from the administrations and local populations in the two municipalities.

Residents near the Rawa Kucing dump site in Tangerang even threatened to set fire to the trucks and burn their drivers alive if they attempted to dump garbage in the area.

They became angry after 12 garbage trucks from Jakarta managed to dump their loads on Monday night. Another 24 trucks were forced to return to the capital.

A total of 15 trucks belonging to the city administration that had planned to dispose of garbage in the Gunung Sindur district in Bogor were also ordered to return to Jakarta by the district head.

The Tangerang Sanitary Agency chief Daryanto said that, although Mayor M. Thamrin had ordered his officers to block three entry points to the Rawa Kucing dump, nine garbage trucks still managed to unload there on Monday night.

Several residents in Kedaung, which is not far from the dump, said three other trucks delivered garbage in front of Kedaung Sakti animal farm on Monday evening, while three other trucks were stopped by residents.

According to Daryanto, the city garbage trucks entered Tangerang from Jl. Daan Mogot. All of the vehicles were covered so that the officers did not realize they contained trash.

"Several city sanitary officials who surveyed the dumping site on Saturday said the city would begin disposing trash there on Tuesday. But in fact, they began disposing on Monday evening," he head.

Quoting mayor M. Thamrin's statement on Tuesday morning, Daryanto said that the municipality remained strongly opposed to accepting the garbage, no matter how much compensation Tangerang might receive from the city.

Earlier, Tangerang had rejected the city's plan to use its land in Ciangir as a garbage dump.

Daryanto also said that, after the closure of the Bantar Gebang site in Bekasi, several officials from the West, South and Central Jakarta sanitary agencies had approached a resident named Erwin, who owns a two-hectare former sand mining plot in Kedaung Wetan subdistrict.

One of the man's neighbors said that Erwin had agreed to the agencies' plan to dispose of garbage on the site, but that he had faced opposition from other locals.

The city officials then appointed a local resident named Acan to collect some 100 local residents' signatures on a statement approving the plan to use the site as a city garbage dump.

The statement was even approved by the subdistrict chief Teddy.

Acan allegedly promised residents between Rp 3 million and Rp 5 million for adding their signatures.

Suhandi, head of the Gunung Sindur district in Bogor, said that the Jakarta administration should not dispose of the city's garbage in the area without a permit from the Bogor authorities.

Meanwhile, a local councilor, Iyus Kusnadi, said the council would oppose any plan to dump the garbage in Bogor even if it had been approved by the administration.

Jakarta has reportedly secured a permit to use a plot of land in Bojong, Bogor as a garbage dump, but locals are against the plan.