Foreign firms eye RI greenhouse projects

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Many foreign investors are considering becoming involved in developing greenhouse gas emission reduction projects here in Indonesia as a result of the country's huge potential, an official says.

Prasetyadi Utomo, the secretary to Indonesia's Designated National Authority (DNA), a unit of the State Ministry for the Environment, predicts that there will be at least 10 projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) submitted by local companies for approval by the government this year.

Under the Kyoto Protocol, which Indonesia has ratified, gas emission reduction projects have to be approved by the United Nations. Project developers are entitled to receive certified emission reductions (CER) from the UN, which can later be used by developed nations to meet their Kyoto protocol targets for reducing gas emissions.

A CER unit stating a one-ton reduction in carbon dioxide is estimated to be worth between US$7 and $8.

"We are in the final stages of approving four CDM projects," Prasetyadi Utomo, the secretary of Indonesia's Designated National Authority (DNA) on CDM at the state ministry told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

The DNA, which was set up in 2005, is tasked with approving such projects before submitting them to the UN's Executive Board.

The four projects consist of a mini-hydro scheme, the use of coconut shells to generate electricity, limiting the use of nitrous oxide in the manufacturing of explosives, and methane extraction during tapioca-starch production.

Prasetyadi said that the mini-hydro project consisted of four small-scale power generating plants in Central Java and West Java, and would be developed by PT Indonesia Power in partnership with Japan-based Chugoku Electric Power Co. Inc.

"The project is expected to generate up to 21,139 tons of carbon reductions per year," Prasetyadi explained.

He said that so far, eight Indonesian CDM projects had been registered with the UN Executive Board. The eight projects could produce emission reductions of up to 1.5 million tons per year.

"Many of the project promoters are from Japan. We hope that more investors from the European nations will locate CDM projects in Indonesia this year," he said.

A statement from the British Embassy in Jakarta said that a delegation of 12 British investors would meet Indonesian CDM project developers during a two-day visit starting Thursday.

"The range of services available from the UK climate change companies is extensive and includes CDM project development and financing, carbon fund management, technology provision, carbon brokerage services, validation and verification, and legal services," the statement said.

The Kyoto Protocol requires developed nations to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 8 percent below 1990 levels in the period between 2008 and 2012.

By contrast, developing countries can host projects to reduce the gases. Indonesia, which ratified the protocol, is not required to reduce its emissions and thus is a potential host country.

The state ministry said that Indonesia had the potential to supply two percent of the global CDM market, or the equivalent of a 125-million-ton reduction in carbon dioxide.

It said that the energy and industrial sectors produced the largest share -- up to 60 percent -- of total emissions in Indonesia.

Fossil and coal-based fuels are believed to be the main causes of greenhouse gas emissions that lead to global climate change.

ADB Funds Water Quality Study in West Tarum Canal

ADB - 15 February 2007 - In response to Jakarta's serious water problems, ADB is funding a study on water quality in the West Tarum canal, which provides 80% of the capital city's freshwater supply.

Read the full story

US offers sweet deal to help Indonesia produce more cocoa

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The United States on Wednesday announced a training programme to help Indonesian farmers battle cocoa bean-eating pests and boost exports to one of America's largest chocolate manufacturers.

Indonesia is the world's third largest cocoa producer, after Ivory Coast and Ghana.

The US Agency for International Development has facilitated an agreement between Blommer Chocolate Co. and supplier PT Olam Indonesia to train farmers on Sulawesi island to improve productivity and tackle the cocoa pod borer, the US embassy was quoted by AFP as saying in a statement.

The moth-like pest lays its larvae in cocoa pods, reducing yields by up to 60 percent and leaving the farmer with a poor quality crop.

Sulawesi's farmers lost 127 million dollars last year due to the ravages of the pest, the embassy said.

The training programme would also help them to improve productivity and quality by 30 percent, enabling them to increase production by 35,000 tonnes a year, it said.

Blommer has agreed to buy premium quality beans at above market value.

The US imported 136,000 tonnes of cocoa from Indonesia in 2005, with American chocolate manufacturers buying about 40 percent of Sulawesi's cocoa butter exports, the embassy said.

Sarundajang wants to become green governor of N. Sulawesi

Jongker Rumteh, The Jakarta Post, Manado

Few governors in Indonesia would turn down mining investment commitments valued at billions of rupiah, but North Sulawesi Sinyo Harry Sarundajang did.

Sarundajang says his decision Monday not to approve a controversial gold mining proposal by PT Meares Soputan Mining (MSM) in North Minahasa regency and Bitung is related to his commitment to being a "green" governor.

In addition, he does not want to undermine his own campaign to host the 2009 World Ocean Summit in Manado.

"In a recent hearing with members of the House of Representatives, I was condemned for turning down badly needed investments ... however, I prefer to be a green governor rather than allowing the destruction of our environment," Sarundajang said in a press conference.

The governor said that when he was still the mayor of Bitung several years ago, the issue of PT MSM managing a gold mine had come up, so he was familiar with the waste management problems involved.

It is up to the central government to decide whether to allow PT MSM to dump tailings, or mining waste, into the sea, Sarundajang said, but the North Sumatra provincial administration controlled whether they could be disposed of on the ground.

"PT MSM plans to dump tailings on the ground; I rejected the plan. In order to strengthen my refusal, I asked the Environment Ministry to perform an environmental audit," he said.

"Seventy-five days after the audit, the governor is supposed to state his position, but before the deadline I sent a letter to the minister informing him of my refusal to allow the operation of the company in our region," Sarundajang said.

His first reason, he said, was that he did not have the technology, experts and instruments to accurately monitor the environmental impact of the tailings disposal.

The second reason was that the proposed mine was located near the Lembeh Strait, the Bunaken National Park and the Tangkoko Nature Conservation Center.

"The mine is located close to various tourism objects, a fishing area and a nature conservation center and if I approve the investment plan, what about the future of those activities?" he said.

"That is all the background to my refusal of the investment plan. I don't have the stomach to watch the destruction of nature in our area. Moreover in 2009 the World Ocean Summit will be held in Manado, where various issues will be discussed, especially how to prevent natural catastrophes," he said.

Award-winning students put green theories into practice

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

How can high school students use science to help save the environment?

They need not spend night and day in the school's laboratory, nor perform complicated experiments. It's more a matter of having a good look around them and applying what their teachers and textbooks say.

The three winning students in the My Environment, My Challenge science competition, held by the Australian Education Center, did so as they mixed a healthy dose of environmental concern with basic science and a dash of creativity.

"There is a lot of organic waste from trees at our school, and we figure, why not help to solve the problem by creating a simple decomposer," said a student representative from private high school Darul Ulum Agung in Malang, East Java, during his final presentation Sunday.

The group proposed the use of simple materials like a plastic barrel, PVC pipes and human saliva to build a simple and affordable decomposer for organic waste.

"Shredded organic waste is put inside and mixed with our own saliva to help speed up the decomposition process," the group explained.

"We can also put in a mix of herbs containing flavonoids to help reduce the smell."

It's simple, it's scientific and it provides a solution to environmental problems.

The group won first place in the third science competition supported by the University of Newcastle in Australia.

Noted scientist Yohannes Surya, who heads Sunday's final assessment of student projects, said the students still had a way to go.

But they have the right spirit.

While most high school students' closest encounters with science are during examinations, the 49 groups from 29 schools nationwide that participated in the competition applied their theories to daily life.

Furthermore, with their limited resources, they are trying to help solve environmental problems.

The runner-up in the competition, a group from Ciputra High School in Surabaya, was even inspired by the mudflow disaster in a neighboring city.

With simple technology, they have actually been able to produce paving blocks from the mud.

Meanwhile, the second runner-up, a Jakartan finalist from the Gandhi International School, formulated a campaign promoting the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle.

They may not have invented anything, but their seven-minute video clip surely reminds fellow teenagers that caring for the environment starts with the basics.

"We would like to add respect and rethink to the 3Rs," said Gandhi's group representative. "Respect our planet and rethink before you start polluting it."

The group advises turning off electronic devices when they are not in use, not letting the tap run when brushing one's teeth and taking carry bags to the grocery store.

Shall we start by helping save the environment in our own homes?

Indonesia gets US$92.8 mln World Bank loan for farmer empowerment

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The World Bank said its board has approved a combined 92.8 mln usd loan package to support a farmer empowerment project in Indonesia.

The project aims to help 400,000 Indonesian farm households improve productivity and incomes over the next five years, it said.

Total project cost is 123 mln usd, with Indonesia providing the balance of funding, the World bank was quoted by XFN Asia as saying.

Total project cost is 123 mln usd, with Indonesia providing the balance of funding, it said.

World Bank country director Andrew Steer said the project will support development of a market-oriented agricultural services system based on partnerships among farmers' groups, public agencies and private sector enterprises.

He added that improving agricultural productivity remains perhaps the best single measure to reduce poverty in Indonesia, with almost two-thirds of the nation's poor consisting of farmers.

Indonesia's poverty rate as a percentage of the total population stood at 17.75 pct as of March 2006, with some 39 mln people living below the poverty line, the World Bank said.

Government pledges food aid for flood-affected families

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government will for the next two months provide basic food items for flood victims in order to improve their nutritional status as well as goods and service flow in the city, a minister says.

The provision of food assistance is part of efforts to prevent any further social and economic impacts from the disaster.

"The main focus after the flooding is on how to keep the economy running as usual, in terms of common businesses, industries, and the basic needs of the public," Coordinating Minister for the Economy Boediono said Monday after a ministerial meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on the matter at the State Palace.

"We will continue supplying the market with as much staple food as needed, mainly rice for those affected by the flooding, and recover export, import and distribution activities."

Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie said the distribution of basic food items -- primarily rice -- would be conducted in the standard manner for any region struck by a disaster.

"How much we provide will depend on the data on victims as reported by the Provincial Disaster Coordination Board (Satkorlak) and the National Disaster Management Coordination Board (Bakornas)," he said.

Aburizal said a household might receive a 10-kilogram monthly rice ration, estimating a total of 6,000 tons for the next two months if 300,000 people were affected.

The government will provide the rice from the Social Affairs Ministry's 230,000-ton emergency stock of rice for disaster purposes, he said.

Boediono said the government would also provide health services as needed for the victims, and ensure security during the post-flooding recovery process.

Torrential rains earlier this month inundated more than half of the capital, taking a toll of at least 50 lives, and forcing some 500,000 others to seek refuge. .

Deputy head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) Lucky Eko Wuryanto provided the latest estimate of Greater Jakarta's total flood losses of Rp 8 trillion (US$888 million), an increase from the previous Rp 4.3 trillion estimate.

Bappenas is assessing how much of the losses the central government and the Jakarta administration will each shoulder.

The flooding, having disrupted the distribution of goods in the capital, could potentially push up inflation, which has recently been slowing but has also been affected by the recent spike in rice prices.

President instructs ministers to anticipate drought this year

The Jakarta Post

JAKARTA (Antara): President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono instructed Monday his ministers to anticipate possible drought by the end of this year due to El Nino phenomenon.

"President has asked Vice President (Jusuf Kalla) to take anticipatory measures on possible drought," Coordinating Minister for the Economy Boediono said after a limited cabinet meeting in the Presidential Office.

The anticipatory measures would include man-made rain, he added.

"This must be prepared right now," he said.

Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono said anotheranticipatory measure would be storing water as much as possible in dams before the drought hit the country.

RI, KL, Brunei signs occur to protect Borneo biodiversity

The Jakarta Post

DENPASAR (Antara) : Governments of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam have signed an agreement to protect environment and biodiversity on Kalimantan Island, which were shared by the three countries.

"Heart of Borneo (HoB)" declaration will be a document, is expected to encourage governments of the three countries to jointly protect environments of the natural resource-rich Kalimantan, said Forestry Minister M.S. Kaban Tuesday.

"The three (Monday) signed the HoB declaration with an objective to protect the environment there," Kaban was quoted by Antara news agency as saying Tuesday after opening Country Leaders Initiatives (CLI) of the United Nation Forestry Forum(UNFF), which ill take place from Feb. 13 to 16 in Denpasar.

Kaban said that The declaration was signed by Brunei industry and resources ministry, Malaysian natural resources and environment, and himself.

Police told to arrest 25 businessmen involved in illegal logging

The Jakarta Post

BANYUWANGI, East Java (Antara): Forestry Minister M.S. Kaban Tuesday told the police to arrest 25 businessmen from across the country, who are involved in illegal logging, sparking flooding in a number of regions.

"There are 25 businessmen, who have no permit from forestry ministry, but they were involved in illegal logging. They have to face prosecutions," Kaban was quoted by Antara news agency as saying Tuesday, but he did not come into detail about the 25 businessmen.

Kaban said some 738,000 hectares of forest conservation areas posed serious damage due to illegal logging.

Strong quake jolts Papua in Indonesia

By Xinhua

Jakarta, Feb 12 (Xinhua) An earthquake of 6.1 magnitude on the Richter scale occurred Monday morning in Indonesia's Papua province, said the Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau here.

The quake, which hit at 09:08 a.m. (Jakarta time), was centred 544 km northwest of Port Moresby in Papua, at a depth of 38 km. There were no casualty reports yet.

The Indonesian archipelago sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire where continental plates meet, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

A moderate 5.7-magnitude earthquake had struck northwest of the Indonesian province of Aceh on Feb 11.

After String of Disasters, Indonesians Ask: Why Us?

By SETH MYDANS, The New York Times

Published: February 11, 2007

JAKARTA, Indonesia, Feb. 9 — Too many shopping malls in the city. Too many squatters on the riverbanks. Too many villas on the southern hillsides. Or a curse hovering over the president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Filthy water still fills much of the city a week after the start of the worst flood in decades, draining slowly away during dry spells, then topped up again by new rain storms. Officials say 80 people have now died, mostly by drowning and electrocution.

Read More ....

Disaster-fatigue and the importance of a Plan B

Manggi Habir, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Within a relatively brief period, we have witnessed a series of tragic disasters, both natural and man-made. This has ranged from the Aceh tsunami to the Adam Air plane crash and more recently to the Jakarta floods. This begs the question as to what we have learned from these painful experiences?

Unfortunately, we must admit not much. With limited resources and awareness, we have often ignored disaster prevention measures in our everyday routines. One notable trend, however, is that with a weak first line of defense, there is a growing importance of contingency disaster plans, or what companies often refer to as plan B (as opposed to the normal operating plan A). And with bird flu just around the corner, our plan B abilities will be truly put to test.

Preventive measures are, in the long run, more cost effective than remedial measures that kick in during and after a disaster. This is intuitive and common sense. On an individual level, better to buy and wear a motorcycle helmet than pay a brain surgeon to reassemble your head. For an airline, better to spend on safety measures than damage your reputation and forego potential revenue from customers switching to safer airlines.

For an oil company, it is better to ensure that safety standards are adhered to (especially when drilling in close proximity to heavily populated areas and public transportation facilities), than to have to pay for damages and compensation. For a provincial government, it better spending on early warning systems and going through practice runs, rather than having to relive another Aceh tsunami or Yogyakarta earthquake tragedy.

And for a municipal governor, better to spend on improving urban canals and drainage systems rather than losing political capital because of floods, should one have further political ambitions.

But, unfortunately, preventive measures are not without cost, while it is always hoped disasters will happen to somebody else, and thus are not a certainty. And with the lack of awareness of the need for preventive measures, even periodic building evacuation exercises remain a rarity.

Companies with the resources normally incorporate preventive measures in their business plans. They do this by identifying critical risk areas in their businesses, and correspondingly install ways to address and minimize these risks. In the absence of insurance, losses are quantified, should mishaps occur, and funds are set aside to cover these potential losses.

Minimum industry safety standards are set and adhered to with proper government or industry enforcement carrying sufficient penalties for non-compliance. Not easy in a developing environment, and to be fair even developed ones find this difficult.

It is like having to exercise, eat a balanced diet and have regular medical check-ups to avoid paying huge hospital bills later on. We know it is good for us, but never have the urgency or time, until unfortunately it is too late. Human nature is such that we tend to ignore the negatives and instead focus on the positives. It must be our survival instinct.

Indeed, it is our weakness in implementing and enforcing preventive measures in our daily routine that leads to the prominence of plan Bs. This is inevitable in an increasingly riskier world, with increased volatility brought about by, among other things, globalization, more frequent and extreme climatic changes and technological innovations. So what constitutes a credible plan B?

This column is not meant to be a treatise on how to do a plan B. Suffice to say that a plan B should have adequate funding, a realistic action plan, an organization with a credible chain of command to the very top (to get visibility, a buy-in from everyone and decisive decision making) and a focal point of communication to ensure accurate and consistent information is made public.

But a plan means nothing if it is not practiced. So it is vital that we do periodic practice runs. Plan B's ideally should remain a work in progress and, after each practice run, constantly fine-tuned to ensure credibility and effectiveness. Tsunami and earthquake practice runs are important exercises to go through. It is sort of like having an army in peacetime. We want them to be battle-ready and continually practice for a war, which we hope will never happen.

This brings me to bird flu, which has already claimed lives and could escalate further into a more deadly pandemic. Experts all agree it is just a matter of time before we have a pandemic. So, in this case, the early warning systems have already been switched on, flashing yellow warning lights. Unlike the recent tsunami and earthquakes, we have the luxury of a bit more time and thus both preventive and contingency plans need to be reviewed and put into action simultaneously.

Preventive measures include ensuring we are vigilant and report any dead birds to the authorities, and when the virus is identified ensuring we cull all fowl and animals (with proper compensation) that could transmit the disease within the surrounding area.

Identify key areas where the deadly virus can breed, like crowded wet markets where people and animals converge and try to ensure as clean an environment as possible. There has been heartening news of a bird flu vaccine being developed in Australia with some success. Although it remains to be seen how soon it can be safely used.

On the plan B remedial side, hospitals have been designated to cater for bird flu patients and isolation wards have been established. Aside from the hardware, it is important to coordinate the dissemination of information to ensure the public is made more aware about bird flu, the symptoms, the dangers and where to go for help should they identify it in their respective communities. Ways to deal with affected relatives and communities to ensure that the disease is isolated and contained is also important.

With all that has happened, it is no wonder we are suffering from a bit of disaster-fatigue. And it is now that our leaders, instead of pointing fingers at each other, should start showing real leadership. It is an opportune time, especially with the general elections only two years away.

The writer is a financial and business analyst and a lecturer at Tarumanegara University in West Jakarta.

Petrogres eyes chance to set up organic fertilizer firms outside Java

Surabaya, East Java (ANTARA News) - Fertilizer manufacturer PT Petrokimia Gresik (Petrogres) has been studying a plan to set up organic fertilizer factories in some areas outside Java, a spokesperson has said.

The high demand for organic fertilizer outside Java has encouraged PT Petrogres to have the plan, Petrogres director Arifin Tasrif said here.

"Before realizing the plan we should study some aspects including raw materials for organic fertilizer. Lampung province seems to be a right place to set up the organic fertilizer factory as it has enough raw materials," he said.

Raw materials for organic fertilizer are manure and sugarcane wastes, he said, adding that an organic fertilizer factory needs an investment value of Rp1 billion to produce 10 tons of organic fertilizer per day.

Until now, he said, Petrogres has already set up 20 organic fertilizer firms dubbed Petroganik in 20 districts in East Java.

Arifin said eight of the Petroganic firms have already operated commercially while the 12 others are under an equipment fabrication process.

"We hope we could set up 30 other Petroganic firms in East Java this year as both investors and farmers are really demanding for more organic fertilizer firms and organic fertilizer price is far lower than that of the chemical one," he said.

Organic fertilizer is sold at Rp1,400-Rp1,500 per kg while inorganic one at Rp2,500 per kg.

Meanwhile, in an inauguration of five Petroganik firms in East Java`s district of Magetan, Agriculture Minister Anton Apriyantono said the government planned to make the use of organic fertilizer to the utmost to reduce the dependence on chemical fertilizer.

Anton, however, did not say whether or not the government would subsidize the making of organic fertilizer as it had done for the inorganic fertilizer production.

Floods have no impact on national production target of rice

Sukoharjo, Central Java (ANTARA News) - Minister of Agriculture Anton Apriantono said that floods had hit some paddy producers areas in Indonesia would not affect the national production target of two million tons of rice this year.

"We have already made a calculation of rice in areas hit by floods and drought," Anton said here on Sunday after handing over of seeds and motorcycles to farmers and those who provide agricultural elucidation in Wonorejo village.

According to him, the recent flood was not so serious as last year`s.

Up to Feb 6, 2007, floods caused some 35,000 hectares of rice fields were dried up, mostly in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and North Sumatra provinces.

He said regions hit by floods were called on to ask for the central government`s assistance immediately. "We have emergency funds for the regions to solve the problems," he added.

Indonesian woman with bird flu dies

Sun Feb 11, 2007 7:47 AM GMT161

JAKARTA (Reuters) - A 20-year-old woman from West Java who tested positive for bird flu died on Sunday, a health official said.

Her death takes Indonesia's overall toll to 64 fatalities, the highest of any nation in the world.

I Nyoman Kandun, director general of communicable disease control at the health ministry, told Reuters that the woman, Elis, had been confirmed to have the H5N1 bird flu virus.

"...the result is from two labs," he said.

The woman had been taken to a hospital in Garut in West Java on Friday after showing bird flu-like symptoms.

Muhammad Nadirin of the health ministry's bird flu centre told Reuters the woman was reported to have had contact with a dead chicken but this was still being investigated.

Most human cases of the bird flu virus, which has killed at least 167 people worldwide since 2003, have involved contact with infected fowl.

After something of a lull last year, concern has grown since the virus flared again in Asia in recent months, spreading through poultry flocks in South Korea, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. And Indonesia, where many people keep chickens in their yards, has reported a number of new human cases.

The virus is endemic in poultry in many provinces in the country of 17,000 islands, where limited health care facilities and poor communications and transportation infrastructure add to the problems of dealing with the virus.

Indonesia's government has come under fire in recent days for stopping the sharing of samples of the highly pathogenic HN51 strain of the virus.

Jakarta argues the prevailing system allows drug firms to use these samples to make vaccines developing countries often cannot afford.

Moderate quake rocks Banda Aceh

JAKARTA (Antara): A 4.2-Richter scale earthquake Saturday hit coastal areas in the Aceh provincial capital of Banda Aceh, but there was no report of damage, casualty and tsunami.

Syahnan, head of Meteorology and Geophysics' (BMG) monitoring post in Mata Ie, Aceh Besar Regency, said epicenter of the tremor occuring at 8:24 a.m. was 91 kilometers Northwest of Blang Pidi, the capital of Aceh Barat Daya regency.

Syahnan said after a strong quake in late 2004, sparking huge tsunami, killing more than 200,000 people across Asia, Aceh province was often hit by earthquakes. Weaker tremors occur between five t0 10 times per day.

Provinces 'better prepared' for disaster than Jakarta

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Several provinces are better prepared to deal with natural disasters than Jakarta, the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) said Friday.

"There are six provincial administrations that are the most concerned with weather changes as well as natural disasters like earthquakes and tsunamis," agency head Sri Woro B. Harijono said during a meeting with members of the Regional Representatives Council.

She said the provinces of West Sumatra, Lampung, Banten, Central Java, Maluku and Gorontalo were all well prepared for any disaster.

"For instance, Gorontalo provincial administration was the first to request the agency install a server to detect earthquakes and tsunamis," Sri told reporters.

The server is equipped with software that will automatically alert local citizens with sirens whenever an earthquake is detected.

The Gorontalo administration, she said, paid to have one installed in the middle of last year. West Sumatra then followed suit.

"Meanwhile, Central Java and Lampung have provided, respectively, a building for a climatology monitoring station and a plot of land for a weather radar tower," she said.

The Jakarta administration, however, is notable only for its lack of action, she said.

"The Jakarta administration has yet to take such action as the other six provinces," Sri said.

"May be the administration thinks that the city is not on the continental plate that might cause earthquakes and tsunamis," she added.

She said that her agency had sent a prediction for torrential rain to the administration on Feb. 1 at 00:20 a.m., a day before the floods hit Jakarta.

"Concerned institutions that receive data sent by the agency should take follow-up action," Sri said.

The Jakarta Public Works Agency's water resources development division said it had acted after receiving the forecast.

"We disseminated the information to related institutions. We also began operating flood posts for victims, shortly after we received the information," the head of the division, I Gede Nyoman Soewandi, told The Jakarta Post.

"We did not, however, predict that the heavy rain would cause this much damage," he added.

So far the flooding in Greater Jakarta has killed 54 people, forced at least 340,000 from their homes, and left more than 200,000 homeless.

Prih Harjadi, deputy for data systems and information at the BMG, said the dissemination of such information needed to be comprehensive and support public awareness and preparedness for natural disasters.

"Sophisticated technology to disseminate information swiftly will not be useful should the people be unaware and unprepared," said Prih.

"Local administrations should also take part in increasing public awareness and preparedness for natural disasters. The administrations should make a plan to help residents evacuate when a natural disaster occurs," he added.

Tremor panics Yogyakartans

YOGYAKARTA, Yogyakarta: A magnitude 3.1 quake rattled Yogyakarta at around 2:30 a.m. on Friday, causing panic among residents but no casualties or damages.

According to the Yogyakarta Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, the epicenter of the quake was located where the Oya and Opak rivers converge in Pundong district, Bantul regency, at a depth of 10 kilometers.

The quake was felt by residents as far away as Klaten, Purworejo and Magelang, all in Central Java.

Many residents raced from their homes when the earthquake struck. "It was the rumbling sound that we feared, reminding us of the May 27 earthquake," said Satria Nugraha of Kasongan, Bantul.

The quake also was felt in Kaliurang, about 25 kilometers from the epicenter. "I live on the second floor and the shock was quite strong. I ran out of the house screaming and I saw many people already outside their houses," said Syaifullah, who lives in Babadan Baru, Kaliurang.

Unabsorbed rain causes flood cycle

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Despite reforestation success in Jakarta's upstream areas, flooding will continue to be an annual occurrence in the capital, a study say.

A study of the subsurface conditions of Jakarta has concluded that underground channels from Parung in Bogor to Serpong in Tangerang are blocked, preventing rainwater infiltration and causing large amounts of runoff.

Robert Delimon, a member of the geotechnology team at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said massive limestone deposits below the ground -- known as the Bojong Manuk formation -- prevented water absorption into the ground.

"This causes a noticeable increase in the volume of surface flow to Jakarta, which is the main source of flooding in the capital."

Robert said flooding had occurred in Jakarta over the last century, even when much of Bogor was forest and there were not many buildings in Jakarta.

The team found the volume of water in the Ciliwung River suddenly increased after passing Parung from Jakarta.

"This is strong evidence that groundwater contributes to the increased volume of water in the Ciliwung. It also proves that Bogor does not supply groundwater to Jakarta," he said.

He said the supply of groundwater in the capital was purely from rainfall in the city.

Over the course of the study, the team monitored a number of groundwater wells citywide and found that only the water in a few wells in Kramat Jati, East Jakarta, had a similar composition to the groundwater in Bogor.

The survey funded by the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature (RIHN) of Japan will be completed in 2010.

"We will further study the subsurface conditions of Jakarta to determine which areas are suitable for water catchments," he said.

A city regulation requires the owners of buildings with roof widths of over 50 meters to construct tanks measuring 2 cubic meters, while developers using a 5,000 square meter area are required to set aside one percent of the total area for a water catchment facility.

Robert said the regulation on water catchment wells would not be effective if developers did not have a good understanding of subsurface conditions.

"Jakarta is a former delta region, wedged between depositions of sand and clay. The depth of water catchment wells must be in line with this composition," he said.

He said catchment wells must be located no more than 40 meters below the ground to function effectively.

The administration has said there is about two billion cubic meters of rainfall in the city every year but only 170 million cubic meters is absorbed, causing a water deficit of 36 million cubic meters per year.

Govt to revitalize two million hectares of land for plantations

Samarinda (ANTARA News) - The government has set a target in plantation by means of revitalizing two million hectares of land in 20 provinces of Indonesia for this sector as a way to increase production of such commodities as oil palm fruit, rubber and cocoa.

"This program should be properly implemented, so that it may bring about greater benefit to the welfare of the farmers," Vice President M Jusuf Kalla here on Friday.

Furthermore, even if the development of plantations is still constrained by many problems, it did not mean that this sector could not be properly managed, he said.

However, the capacity of natural resources such as oil, gas and coal has been declining, so that the diversification of plantation-based energy is badly required.

"Therefore, the best way to that end is by improving products of sustainable, renewable natural resources regarded as a source of life for the people," Kalla said.

Even constrained by many problems, the revitalization of plantations should continue, he said, adding that the two million hectares of land to be revitalized would be located in 20 provinces, mostly in Sumatra and Kalimantan for rubber and palm oil trees and eastern provinces of Indonesia for cocoa.

Estimated to cost Rp25 trillion, the program will be implemented with the support of five national banks such as Bank Mandiri, BRI, Bank Bukopin, West Sumatra Development Bank and North Sumatra development bank.

In the meantime, Agriculture Minister Anton Apriantono said in the past five years, crude palm oil continued to record an annual rise of about 12.1 percent.

It was also reported that with 4.1 million hectares of palm tree plantations in 2000, Indonesia could export 8.5 million tons of crude palm oil worth US$ 13 million.

With 5.5 milion hectares of land in 2005, the volume of crude palm oil exported rose to 11.5 million tons worth US$4,400 million.

To some extent, a big volume of crude palm oil produced has placed Indonesia as the second biggest crude palm oil producing country in the world after Malaysia.

Its wide palm oil plantation area had actually enabled Indonesia to absorb 2.8 million of its work force. But, at present the development of this sector is still confronted with constraints because of poor management, so maximum production of crude palm oil could be properly achieved.

Beside setting plantation revitalization program, the vice president also dedicated seven other development projects in East Kalimantan.

Chemical manufacturer gets loan from Japanese firms

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia`s chemical manufacturing company PT Budi Acid Jaya has secured a US$3.5 million loan from Japan`s Nedo Fund and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, a spokesperson said here Friday.

The fund will be used for development of a biogas-fueled power plant, PT Budi Acid Jaya President Director Santoso Winata told the Jakarta Stock Exchange.

The loan carries an interest rate of 2 percent, higher than that of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, he said.

The loan with a period of grace until 2012 will be repaid after the power plant has been fully operational, he said.

Budi Acid Jaya`s core businesses are manufacturing and selling tapioca starch, citric acid and other chemicals, monosodium glutamate, plastic bags, glucose and modified tapioca starch.

The tapioca starch is marketed under the Red Mountain and Green Mountain brand names. The group`s factories are located in Subang, Lampung and Jambi with their products sold at home and abroad.

The business group was set up on January 15, 1979 under the name of PT North Aspac Chemical Industrial Company.

Learning our lesson: Will Jakarta sink again?

Andrio Adiwibowo, Jakarta

The sky over Jakarta was bright and everything seemed peaceful on Wednesday. However, if you turned on the television and watched the news, you would have been surprised to see the reality.

The capital city, the center of power and government in Indonesia, has been struck by floods and paralyzed for almost a week, leaving hundreds of thousands of people displaced and buildings damaged. The flooding covered 70 percent of Jakarta at one point. At least 314,000 Jakartans were directly affected and millions more indirectly due to electricity outages, disrupted telecommunication networks and water and gasoline supplies, and traffic congestion.

Jakarta is not blessed with great geographical conditions. It is located in the lowlands, near the sea, and is crossed by 13 rivers flowing down from the south. Yearly rainfall is more than 2,000 millimeters and there is rarely a year without floods. Another time bomb is the rapid population growth and urbanization.

These factors have combined to cause such urban cancers as massive land conversion, which continues to occur at full speed. The Jakarta floods are a microcosm of a much greater national problem. Regulations are ignored at will by the kings of the construction industry, real estate players and industrial bullies who run factories that ignore the surrounding environment.

A century ago, the Dutch colonial government reminded city planners that the development of Batavia, as Jakarta was then known, should focus carefully on the waterways. The Dutch, with their long experience in controlling water and drainage systems, made sure that Batavia had a comprehensive and engineered network of rivers, drains and canals to cope with the weaknesses of man and acts of God.

Nevertheless, the Dutch canal system never quite managed to cope with the drainage problems. For instance, in 1846, almost a century before Indonesia's independence, they chose the same approach as the current administration: to sort out the problems only when floods happened.

After the major floods in 2002, the Jakarta government declared a drive to prevent future flooding, but the campaign quickly faded away. At about the same time government officials proposed the creation of a megacity that would cover all of Greater Jakarta. The core of the concept was that the development of Jakarta, including its flood control system, should be coordinated with the four satellite regions of Tangerang, Bekasi, Bogor and Depok.

But the economic interests of the respective administrations thwarted the plan. The plan recommended that the satellite regions, mainly Bogor, put a brake on development and land conversion. Bogor considered the idea discriminatory and pledged to continue its development programs. The other satellite regions danced to Bogor's tune.

Sometimes, coordination has its price. The solution offered here is that Jakarta has to provide a lavish budget to buy land in Bogor that can serve as water catchment areas. Another strategy is to provide incentives for landlords or stakeholders to help in land preservation.

Managing the environment at a moderate level may be more promising. Instead of doing some acrobatic land-based preservation, one should emphasize the management of the Ciliwung River, which runs across Jakarta and Bogor. However, there are still dangers. The Bogor authorities will view everything that is dumped into the water yet has passed through its territory as not being its problem or responsibility.

Managing flooding is not just about how to keep people from water, but how to get people out of water to safety. Experiences from past disasters provide us a big picture of how poor the government's post-disaster management is. Some problems always on the menu are the poor availability of instant food, dry clothes, clean water and medicines for particular diseases. The authorities are now facing demanding challenge to accelerate the delivery of aid.

The next principle issue is policy. Most policies on environmental management are immature and being planned and applied only for the short term. On the other hand, environmental processes and problem are long term. We have assumed that within five years major flood would strike, unfortunately, the plan was only effective for one year.

The laissez-faire attitude toward the environment by human enterprises has caused one disaster after another. The immense destruction of rain forests takes place far away from Jakarta, but the message is the same: taking firm action only when the river of grievances overflows. One should notice how much the irresponsible behavior of Indonesians affects the severity of the "natural" disaster now under way in Jakarta

Right now the water has begun to dry up, as is our memory of yesterday's floods. Thus, we will forget and fail to learn. We assume nothing has happened, as if it's business as usual. If we continue to dance to the same tune, then what happened yesterday will recur, perhaps on an even larger scale. Apparently, the people of Jakarta had better learn to swim.

The writer holds a master's degree from the University of Queensland, majoring in Tropical Natural Resource Management, and teaches Landscape Ecology and Natural Resources Management Policy at the Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia, Jakarta.

Western Australian minister to visit Indonesia

ANTARA News - 2007-02-09 10:56:39

Jakarta, February 8, 2007 (ANTARA News) - Western Australian Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Disabled Service Tony McRae will visit Indonesia beginning Friday, the Australian Embassy said.

Upon his arrival, McRae will meet with Indonesian Forest Minister MS Kaban, the embassy said in a statement made available to ANTARA here Thursday.

During his five-day Indonesian tour, McRae will visit East Java province where he will observe Solco solar energy project in Sumber Miri area on February 11 and meet with East Java governor on Feb 13, it said,

According to the statement, McRae?s visit to East Java is aimed at strengthening ties between Western Australia and the Indonesian province.

Western Australia set up a sister state with East Java in 1990 to pave the way for developing long-term commercial and cultural relationship between the two regions, it said.

Higher green space target written into draft law

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In an effort to maintain environmental quality, a currently drafted revision of the 1992 law on spatial and urban planning will require cities nationwide to allocate a minimum of 30 percent of their land area for open green spaces.

The House of Representatives working committee for spatial planning has completed the first draft of the revision of Law No. 24/1992 and is seeking feedback from the public before continuing with the drafting process.

The inclusion of an article on green spaces was prompted by the over-development of cities, Hermanto Dardak, the Public Works Ministry's director general for spatial planning, said last week.

Jakarta itself has lowered its target of open green space coverage from 26 percent, as stated in the city's 1985-2005 master plan, to 13.94 percent in its 2010 master plan.

According to the revised law, the public green space allocation in cities like Jakarta should be at least 10 percent, with 20 percent of city land comprising private green areas such as lawns and gardens.

Currently, some 7,250 hectares (9 percent) of open green space in the city is managed by the city parks agency, the cemetery agency, the transportation agency and a number of other institutions.

The 9 percent includes private property.

Increasing the city's open green space to 30 percent would have far-reaching environmental benefits.

However, environmental groups are generally skeptical that the current rate of development city in the area will slow.

"Speaking in worst-case terms, if Jakarta was forced to meet such a target, it would be the kampong people who once again had to make way for development," M. Hasbi Azis, the head of research and policy development at environmental group Walhi Jakarta, said.

Hasbi said the city needed quality open green spaces that would absorb rainwater and improve air quality.

"What we have now is artificial green space. The green areas do not create a working environmental network," he said.

Furthermore, the existing open green spaces are rapidly being developed for commercial purposes.

The conversion rate of parks into more profitable properties in 2004 was recorded at a high 55 percent in West Jakarta and almost 25 percent in South Jakarta, the Jakarta Statistics Agency (BPS Jakarta) revealed.

Experts have said the conversion of open green spaces has increased the flood risk in the city.

National data released by the Public Works Ministry showed the private sector was responsible for 54 percent of land use violations.

Violations that were accommodated by the administrations themselves, either for the benefit of private parties or for the sake of increasing tax income.

In a bid to break the vicious circle of land use violations, the draft law stipulates stiff sanctions for perpetrators.

Unlike the old version of the law, the new one requires agencies or government institutions that approve the conversion of designated green areas to cover any financial losses that result from the violation.

Govt says no food shortages in Jakarta

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government on Wednesday assured flood victims in Greater Jakarta that the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) was prepared to release rice and other food stocks to prevent shortages.

Social Services Minister Bachtiar Chamsyah said officials in flood-stricken areas of Jakarta and surrounding cities were able to obtain food stocks from Bulog as the need arose.

"We have a leftover stock of rice from 2006 of 300,000 tons, and I can assure you that officials in flood-affected areas can access this rice at any time without permission from me," Bachtiar said after a meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Bachtiar said the government had set aside 200 tons of rice per day for flood victims.

According to data from the Social Services Ministry, as of Wednesday more than 225,000 flood victims were seeking refuge in Greater Jakarta.

Most of these displaced people are in South Jakarta, where more than 80,000 people are sheltering in mosques, railway stations, schools and cemeteries. In East Jakarta, more than 45,000 people are living in temporary shelters.

Overcrowding and unsanitary conditions have sparked fears of outbreaks of disease.

The head of the national bird flu commission, Bayu Krisnamurti, has warned that the floods could intensify the spread of the HN51 virus to humans.

The death toll from the floods -- which at their peak forced some 340,000 people from their homes -- rose to at least 50 on Wednesday, the Health Ministry said. Most of the fatalities were due to drowning or electrocution.

Minister Bachtiar said the government would provide families of the deceased Rp 2 million (about US$220) in compensation.

"All the families need to get the compensation is a letter from their local social services agency," he said.

Meanwhile, Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said the supply of goods to Jakarta was expected to return to normal in the next few days.

"What we have to do now is convince suppliers from outside of Jakarta that all access routes to Jakarta are open and safe," Mari said.

She said the Jakarta Police have agreed to guarantee safe passage for goods entering the capital.

"We had a meeting Tuesday with associations of food and beverage producers, owners of land transportation vehicles and the Jakarta Police, in which the police agreed to provide daily updates on road conditions and access to Jakarta," Mari said.

She said the government's priority now was to ensure the supply of goods to Jakarta returned to normal as soon as possible.

Mari also said the government would continue efforts to ensure rice prices did not rise and hurt flood victims.

RI, Coabisco agree to develop cocoa-based industries

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia, the world`s third biggest cocoa producer has agreed to cooperate with the Association of the Chocolate, Biscuit and Confectionary Industries of the European Union (COABISCO) in developing cocoa-based industries in the country, a minister said.

"We have reached a cooperation agreement in the sense that as an association, (COABISCO) has a lot of information on market demand in the European Union," Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu said on Wednesday.

A team of COABISCO officials visited cacao plantations and cocoa-based industries in Indonesia some time ago to give inputs on how to produce high quality cocoa, she said.

In addition, the association would also help Indonesia get the same treatment as African countries in terms of import duties on processed cocoa, she said.

"Basically, African and Asian countries are the same. However, as the majority of African countries are least developed ones they have special agreements with EU. So, we must try to get the same treatment as the African countries," she said.

Indonesia which produces around 400,000 tons of cocoa a year is the world`s biggest cocoa producer after Ivory Coast and Ghana. Around 70 percent of Indonesia`s cocoa production is exported.

Singapore Red Cross donates $50,000 towards rescue efforts in Jakarta

By Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 07 February 2007 1638 hrs

SINGAPORE : The Singapore Red Cross has donated $50,000 to its sister organisation, Palang Merah Indonesia (PMI), towards its rescue and evacuation efforts in Jakarta.

More than 350,000 people have been left homeless since massive flooding plagued the Indonesian capital due to torrential rains.

Through "Rapid Response Teams", PMI has set up temporary shelters and field kitchens which provide meals to over 35,000 people in affected areas daily.

Other relief items include tents, life jackets, rice and instant noodles.

Plans are also underway to implement a system of distributing drinking water.

The Singapore Red Cross says the money will go towards supporting these rescue efforts.

Depending on PMI assessment, the SRC says a second phase of assistance, including vaccination programmes and distribution of medicine, is possible. - CNA /ls

More foreign aid pours flood victims

JAKARTA (Agencies): More foreign countries have expressed their commitments to help flood victims in the capital and its surrounding, whose houses and properties have been inundated since last Friday.

The Dutch government said it is sending US$1.3 million to Indonesia to help bring relief to millions of people hit by deadly flooding in the capital, Jakarta.

Overseas Development Aid Minister Agnes van Ardenne said half the money would be used to buy food, medicine, clothes and blankets for victims. The other half would buy rubber boats to ferry them around the inundated city."As good friends, it goes without saying that we would help Indonesia now that 75 percent of Jakarta is underwater," Van Ardenne was quoted by AP news agency as saying.

Meanwhile, the European Union said Tuesday it would give US$777,300 to help flood victims in Jakarta.

The U.S. Australia, and Japan have previously also expressed their commitments to help flood victims.

Flood victims flock health centers

JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of flood victims Wednesday began flocking health centers, providing them with free health treatments in their temporary shelters.

As the flood receded in many parts of the city, many residents, particularly children, began suffering from various health problems like cough, skin diseases, diarrhea, respiratory problems.

There are clear concerns of possible epidemic disease outbreaks from contaminated water in Jakarta, said the European Commission, which pledged US$777,300 on Tuesday for flood victims.

Sri and hundreds of residents of Rawabuaya subdistrict in West Java queued for health treatment for her 8-year old baby provided by a non-governmental organization.

"She is continuously scratching her skin because of her skin disease. He suffered from it after wearing clothes washed with floodwater,"Sri told Elshinta news radio Wednesday.

Although health centers were opened by non-governmental organizations, city administration, political parties and other voluntary groups, many are still complained they have not been reached by free health cares due to large scale of flooding in the capital and its surroundings.

Indonesia's largest biodiesel plant to come on stream in May

Jakarta (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - PT Bukit Kapur Reksa, a subsidiary of Wilmar Energy, is building the country's largest biodiesel factory in the Pelintung Industrial Estate in Dumai, in Riau.

The factory will need one million tons of crude palm oil (CPO) as raw material, an official of the Riau Plantation Office said.

He said construction of the factory started in December 2006 and was expected to be completed and start operation in May this year.

United Nations to help Jakarta floods victims

NEW YORK (Antara): The United Nations' humanitarian bodies would send relief aid for flood victims in Jakarta and suburban areas.

The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has identified goods and emergency tools needed such as food, clean water, clothes, blankets, medicines, and search and rescue (SAR) equipment and teams, a press statement from the UN said on Monday.

Official of the UN's Emergency Relief Coordinator Margareta Wahsltrom said that the United Nations in cooperation with a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and countries, who were going to provide assistance for flood-hit Indonesia,were currently monitoring the situation in the flood aftermath.

The UN relief aid would involve the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), UNICEF, the World Food Program (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Information from the Jakarta Police on Tuesday morning said that the death toll in five days of floods in Jakarta and environs climbed to 36, consisting of 26 in Jakarta, 6 in Tangerang and 4 in Bekasi.

Several areas of Jakarta have been inundated following days of torrential rains which caused some of the rivers and canals whichcriss-cross the city to burst their banks.

The floods since Thursday have forced around 300,000 to take refuge to safer areas.

Australia's contribution of A$150,000 (US$117,000) would provide thousands of emergency food parcels and hygiene kits to be distributed by the Indonesian Red Cross, Ambassador Bill Farmer said in a statement.

The US embassy said it would give $100,000 in emergency assistance through the Red Cross and other organizations to provide emergency supplies and items such as plastic sheets, cooking utensils and sleeping mats.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife, Ani Yudhoyono, visited flood-affected areas in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta, on Friday and talked with flood victims sheltered in the Santa Maria school compound in Jatinegara Barat.