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Indonesia Citarum River



Concerns about Dirty Deals Plague Citarum Clean-Up Effort

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Last week on Asia Calling we heard about the desperate state of Indonesia’s Citarum River.

For twenty years, the river has been a dumping ground for domestic and industrial waste, and severely damaged by land-clearing and erosion upstream.

Now the Indonesian government has initiated an ambitious 15-year plan to clean up the river, with the help of a half-billion dollar loan from the Asian Development Bank.

The plan has received mixed responses. Some local NGO’s and activists praise the plan, saying urgent action is needed.

But others say it will only encourage corruption, and negatively affect the lives of poor illegal tenants who will be evicted during the cleanup.

Elise Potaka has this report for Asia Calling.

Last Updated ( Friday, 22 January 2010 16:15 )
 

Pollution Overwhelming Indonesia’s Citarum River

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The Citarum River is one of Indonesia’s most strategic waterways, supporting millions of people and providing water to the country’s capital, Jakarta.

But overuse and increasing industrial pollution over the last twenty years has severely damaged the river.

Winding its way through the hills above the Jakarta, the Citarum collects sediment from eroded land, and pollutants from villages and factories.

Floods are commonplace, and the livelihoods and health of those who live along the river are under threat.

For Asia Calling Elise Potaka visited communities living on its banks and filed this report.

Last Updated ( Friday, 22 January 2010 15:58 )
 

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