Water shortages spread

Water shortages spread

The Jakarta Post, Antara

Millions of people nationwide are beginning to feel the effects
of the dry season this year, which has led to water shortages and
forest fires in many parts in the country.

Tens of thousands of residents in the densely populated
Bojonegoro regency in East Java province and Sragen regency in
Central Java province have been suffering from a lack of water
for the last few weeks, and are now desperately waiting for the
government to act. "The government has been very slow to start
distributing clean water to the people," Suhartati, a resident of
Kapas district, Bojonegoro regency, was quoted as saying by
Antara on Wednesday.

Muchid, the director of the Family Planning and Social Welfare
Office in the Bojonegoro regency administration, acknowledged
that three districts in the regency had submitted proposals to
the government for the distribution of clean water to people in
those districts.

However, the proposals could not be immediately acted upon due
to bureaucratic reasons.

"We admit that the distribution of water to these districts
has not happened yet. The district officials have filed their
proposal, and we will discuss the matter soon with the local
water utility, PT PDAM," said Muchid, adding that the first water
deliveries would likely be carried out next week.

Separately, the director of PT PDAM's Bojonegoro office,
Achmad Dharmawan, said that his company was ready to distribute
water to the three districts, provided that the local government
submitted a request to the company.

"We have allocated four trucks with a capacity of four
thousand liters of water per truck," he said.

Normally, water is distributed free to those areas suffering
from water shortages during the dry season.

Separately in Sragen, the local regency government has been
distributing free potable water to people living in 25
subdistricts in the regency. Totok Sutrisno, a spokesman for the
administration, said that the local government had dispatched 12
trucks on Wednesday to help alleviate water shortages in 25
subdistricts here.

The government had earlier constructed artesian wells in
several subdistricts here, including Cangklong subdistrict, and
this had helped prevent water shortages in these areas.

In West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province, NTB Governor Lalu
Serinata conceded that parts of NTB had been suffering from water
shortages over the last few weeks. He blamed illegal logging for
the dry season water shortages. "The illegal logging has led to
deforestation, meaning that it has also reduced the extent of
water catchment areas," said Serinata.

Besides water shortages, forest fires have also become a cause
for concern around the country since the onset of the dry season
in June.

Hidayat, the head of the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency
(BMG)'s Palangka Raya office, called on local people on Wednesday
to avoid doing anything that could lead to forest fires in
Central Kalimantan province. "A small fire can lead to a forest
fire during the dry season," he said.

Forest fires were dangerous for residents residing near
forests, and could also result in a haze problem in the province,
said Hidayat in Palangka Raya, the capital of Central Kalimantan.

He forecast that the rains would start to fall on the province
again in October this year. Similarly, the governor of West
Kalimantan, Usman Ja'afar, also warned local residents not to
clear land using the slash-and-burn method for fear of sparking
large-scale forest fires in the province.

In the South Sumatra capital of Palembang, a senior official
warned on Wednesday that local residents should avoid leaving
their homes in daylight.

"August is the peak of the dry season this year and the
weather can reach 34 Celsius at noon. If people are exposed to
the sun for long periods, they could be burnt or get headaches,"
said Suyatim, the head of the BMG's South Sumatra office in
Palembang.