Yogyakarta hosts environment center

YOGYAKARTA: State Minister of the Environment Rachmat Witoelar inaugurated on Monday the Environment Management Center for the Java Region in Yogyakarta to address environmental problems in six provinces.

Rachmat said the center, which is headed by Soedarsono, had been established with the aim of encouraging environmental preservation and pollution control by industries in Banten, Central Java, East Timur, Jakarta, West Java and Yogyakarta.

Similar centers have been set up for the Sumatra, Bali-Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi-Maluku-Papua and Kalimantan regions.

"The presence of an environment management center for the Java region encourages direct public involvement. People can file their complaints over pollution here, as well as other environment-related problems," Rachmat said. -- JP