India blows up luxury high-rises over environmental violations

Yahoo – AFP, Abhaya SRIVASTAVA, January 11, 2020

India has seen a construction boom in recent years but developers have often
ridden roughshod over safety and other regulations (AFP Photo/Arun SANKAR)

Two luxury waterfront high-rises in southern India were reduced to rubble in controlled explosions Saturday in a rare example of authorities getting tough on builders who break environmental rules.

The 19-floor H2O Holy Faith complex of 90 flats -- overlooking Kerala state's famous lush backwaters -- was the first to go down, collapsing in just a matter of few seconds.

A thick grey cloud of dust and debris cascaded down after officials detonated explosives drilled into the walls of the building, which had been occupied for several years until the Supreme Court ruled last May that it was constructed in violation of coastal regulations.

Minutes later, the twin towers of Alfa Serene tumbled down with an ear-splitting noise. The remaining two complexes will be razed on Sunday.

A crowd of onlookers who flocked to nearby terraces and roads watched the demolition, after officials in helicopters conducted aerial surveys.

India has seen a construction boom in recent years but developers have often ridden roughshod over safety and other regulations, with the connivance of local officials.

The inhabitants of the apartment blocks in the well-off Maradu district of Kochi city had bought their 343 flats in good faith and now face a lengthy legal fight to recoup their money. Some had invested their life savings.

Sirens went off warning people gathered for the demolition to remain at a safe distance

while ambulances and fire engines stood on standby (AFP Photo/Arun SANKAR)

Sirens went off on Saturday warning people gathered for the demolition to remain at a safe distance while ambulances and fire engines stood on standby.

Ahead of the work, nearby residents told AFP they were worried about the impact of the demolition on their homes.

"When they were demolishing the swimming pool, some of the houses in our neighbourhood developed cracks, we are really worried," said Divya, who has moved into temporary accommodation.

Over 2,000 residents living in the neighbourhood were evacuated as a part of safety measures.

Scenic and fragile

The demolition capped a saga that began in 2006 when a local governing body granted permission to private builders to erect the high-rises.

But last year, the Supreme Court ruled that the builders were in breach of rules about construction in an ecologically sensitive coastal zone, calling it a "colossal loss" to the environment.

"It's a high-tide area and hundreds of illegal structures have come up in the coastal zone," the court ruled as it ordered the buildings razed.

The inhabitants of the razed apartment blocks in the well-off Maradu district of Kochi 

city had bought their 343 flats in good faith and now face a lengthy legal fight to 

recoup their money (AFP Photo/Arun SANKAR)

On Friday the court also ordered the demolition of a resort in neighbouring Alappuzha district after its owners lost the appeal of a 2013 ruling that said the structure violated environmental regulations and must be demolished.

Kerala is famed for its brackish lagoons and lakes that run parallel to the Arabian Sea -- creating an environmentally fragile region.

In 2018, the state was battered by its worst floods in almost a century that killed more than 400 people.

Experts blamed the disaster on the government's eagerness to build houses, hotels and resorts with little regard for coastal planning regulations.

The residents of the Maradu apartments initially refused to vacate but moved out after local authorities cut water and power supplies.

They have been given interim partial compensation by the state government while the builders are in the process of providing a refund.

Shamshudeen Karunagapally, who bought a flat for $145,000, said his wife and children did not watch the buildings go down as it was "too painful for them to see their dreams shatter before their eyes".

"We are suffering without any fault," he told AFP.

BayernLB under pressure over Dakota pipeline investment

Bavaria's state bank is set to invest about $120 million in the Dakota Access Pipeline, which threatens a Native American reservation and drinking water. Other banks have already sold their stake.

Deutsche Welle, 6 February 2017

There aren't many members of the Sioux tribe living in Bavaria but, thanks to the tentacles of international finance, the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) being built near the US's Standing Rock Indian Reservation have reached the state capital, Munich.

Last week, protesters from an alliance of NGOs arrived on the doorsteps of the BayernLB bank to deliver more than 700,000 signatures collected via worldwide petitions against the investments of 17 financial institutions into DAPL. These included more than 220,000 signatures specifically aimed at BayernLB's contribution that had been collected in a few days. By Monday 6, the online petition had reached close to 300,000 signatures.

Despite an invitation from the environmental campaigners Urgewald, Bavaria's state bank declined to send any representatives outside the building to receive the petition. "But we were allowed to go in with a delegation of three people, and we gave the petition to the press spokesman," said Regine Richter, banking specialist at Urgewald.

The bank itself is unwilling to give interviews on the subject and in response to DW's request would only send the public statement it issued in December, which made many conciliatory noises. "BayernLB is following the running discussions about the route of the pipeline very carefully and, as part of the consortium financing the pipeline, supports an amicable result of the discussions between the parties," it read.

Wait and see

BayernLB said it was waiting on a report from the US law firm Foley Hoag that was commissioned in December to look into how the local indigenous people had been consulted for the project. That report is due out later this month, but it may come too late. In January, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order decreeing that the environmental review for the project be fast-tracked.

"Nobody is really sure that means, but we are concerned that DAPL could get the green light any day now," Nick Pelosi, corporate engagement director for the campaign group First Peoples Worldwide, told DW. "It's such an urgent matter at this point that we really don't have time."

Not only that: The study is being conducted behind closed doors and may be no more than a desktop assessment. "From what we understand, it is a study on tribal consultation, which is the crux of this issue - that the tribe was not consulted properly about this pipeline," Pelosi said. "But nobody's reached out to the tribe, so it's essentially a study on consultation without any consultation."

The 17 banks insist that the loans for DAPL - amounting to $2.5 billion (2.3 billion euros) - are now legally committed. "But some have shown concern and that they are willing to exert the limited influence that they have," Pelosi said.

"I definitely think they're feeling the pressure," he said. "But what the tribe is asking is not necessarily for the banks to pull out, but to use their influence as project lenders to pressure the company into rerouting to avoid their treaty territory."

The banks say that influence appears to be very limited indeed: They argue that they can't impose new conditions on the loans and that it isn't their role to determine the route. "Which is true - it's the US government's responsibility - but we're asking them to support the reroute, not dictate it," Pelosi said.

Dozens of protesters have been arrested
at the Standing Rock reservation

Passive bank

Compared with other banks, BayernLB has been particularly recalcitrant. "BayernLB was one of the few that outright rejected our request for dialogue," said Pelosi.

"BayernLB is being much too passive," Richter said. "Banks like the Dutch ING and the Norwegian DNB are at least expressing public criticism of the pipeline consortium's behavior or are selling stakes in the companies involved."

Meanwhile in Germany, BayernLB's involvement in the project (a $120 million contribution to DAPL) has raised some political hackles - firstly because it is partly owned by the state, and secondly because it received a colossal taxpayer-funded 10 billion-euro ($9.3 billion) bailout during Europe's financial crisis in 2008.

"BayernLB should not be allowed to support the dirty business of climate denier Donald Trump," said Anton Hofreiter, the Greens' parliamentary leader and a native of Bavaria. "This project destroys the environment, is a risk for the drinking water from the Missouri River and, at the same time, desecrates the Native Americans' cultural heritage."

Hofreiter, along with other German politicians, is sure that BayernLB's commitment to the project could be reversed by Bavaria's state government. "I'm sure it's possible," Frank Schwabe, Bundestag member for the Social Democrats, told DW. "The bank has oversight committees, and there is political influence on that, so it would be good if the politicians in Bavaria would take a clear position on it. We're discussing the issue of company and bank responsibility more and more, and I think that a state bank in particular needs to stick to that."

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ING, ABN Amro under renewed pressure over Dakota pipeline

DutchNews, January 25, 2017    

Dutch banks ING and ABN Amro are under renewed pressure about their roles in a controversial pipeline in the US, now president Donald Trump has vowed to press ahead with the project, broadcaster NOS said on Wednesday. 

The construction has prompted violent clashes between the army and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe who say construction of the pipeline through northern Dakota could affect its drinking water supply and put communities ‘at risk of contamination by crude oil leaks and spills.’

ING issued an updated statement on Thursday afternoon saying that it has publicly expressed its concerns about the project.

‘We have signed a contract, which is legally impossible to withdraw from,’ the bank said.  ‘What we can do is use our influence wherever possible to bring the process to a satisfactory outcome for all parties involved. 

The lenders to the pipeline have commissioned additional research to be conducted by an external independent human rights expert and will continue to monitor developments closely, ING said. 

In addition, the bank says it will meet members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in mid February. 

Loans

According to fair banking campaign group Eerlijke Bankwijzer, ING has pumped the equivalent of €233m into the project in direct loans while ABN Amro has lent $45m to companies which are involved with the project. 

ABN Amro stressed earlier that it is not directly funding the project but has a ‘relationship’ with one of the major investors, Energy Transfer Equity.

‘In line with ABN Amro’s policy for sustainable banking, the bank continuously consults with Energy Transfer Equity on developments regarding the Dakota access pipeline, the bank said.

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Greenpeace activists unfurl large "Resist" banner from construction crane blocks from White House to protest Trump https://t.co/PbEg0i5ulN pic.twitter.com/Hsu2Ik2lyY

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 25, 2017

Belated win for coastal protection in Spain

Environmentalists have won a decade-long battle to halt construction of a mega-hotel in one of Spain's largest coastal protected areas. However, the conflict between tourism and conservation is far from over.

Deutsche Welle, 24 February 2016

El Algarrobico has been for a decade one of the most controversial buildings in Spain

It was a clear win for environmentalists when Spain's highest court ruled the construction of a mega-hotel 'illegal'.

Just 14 meters away from El Algarrobico, a pristine beach of Cabo de Gata in southern Spain, the hotel - with its 21 floors and 411 bedrooms - stands vacant.

Its construction in the province of Almeria was dubbed one of Spain's biggest environmental scandals.

The Spanish Supreme Court recently declared the area environmentally protected and has banned construction. Environmentalists have hailed the decision a great success. But, the victory may have come a bit late.

A decade of confusion

"The countdown for the demolition of the Algarrobico's hotel has finally started," said Andalusian environment minister José Fiscal.

His triumphant announcement comes after years of backtracking and legal ambiguity with many locals holding the regional government responsible for the whole fiasco.

It all began in the 1980s, when construction of the hotel was first licensed. Then, the coastal area was not protected. But by the time construction began in 2003, that had changed and building was prohibited.

The hotel is located in a protected area within the natural park, Cabo de Gata

It wasn’t until 2006 that a local court first ordered an immediate halt to building. But the national environment ministry and the regional government of Andalusia failed to react to the ruling.

Then in 2012, the high court of Andalusia declared the hotel illegal and called for its demolition. But two years later, the court reversed its decision. The hotel was legal and building free to restart.

Now, 10 years after works were halted, Spain's Supreme Court has finally given the green light for its demolition.

The price of the victory

Tearing down the huge edifice will cost an estimated 7 million euros. The national and local government are to split the bill.

There is also the outstanding question of compensation for the hotel’s owners – who are demanding around 70 million euros.

Locals feel they too have lost out financially.

While environmental groups have long fought the hotel, it has always had majority support in the area – mainly for economic reasons.

"Once it was already constructed, it would have been best to make use of it," said Salvador Hernández, mayor of the nearby village of Carboneras.

Hernández argues the hotel would have brought much needed jobs to the village. "Instead, the people – through taxes – will pay for its demolition, and the consequences," he told DW.

Hernández believes the local community has emerged the biggest loser from a debacle that put Carboneras on the map for all the wrong reasons.

"Our village may be outstanding for many reasons, but our image has been destroyed by this scandal," he lamented.

The natural park Cabo de Gata is the largest coastal protected area in Andalusia

An uncertain future

And the construction that has loomed over Algarrobico for more than a decade will not disappear overnight.

The demolition is expected to produce around 60,000 cubic meters of waste, of which at least 40,000 cubic meters must removed and dumped. The remainder is to be used in the area’s recovery

Greenpeace at least sees an upside to this logistical challenge.

"The demolition work would bring around 400 new jobs," said Pilar Marcos, head of Greenpeace Spain’s coastal campaign.

"98% of the materials could be recycled. Moreover, it represents a new opportunity for sustainable tourism."

What the beach will look like once the process is over remains an open question. Whether it will be restored to its natural state – or become the site for new tourism services has yet to be decided.

Massive tourism is visible all along the Spanish coast

Tourism threatens conservation

According to WWF, tourism is one of the main causes for biodiversity loss in the Mediterranean region. Sea beds, coastal landscapes and marine dynamics are all at risk.

Spain is one of the world’s best-loved tourist destinations. In 2014, it was ranked third in the world for numbers of foreign tourists by the United Nations Tourism Organization.

But threats to environment from tourism are a problem the world over, with Mexico, China, Ecuador, Indonesia and Nepal just a few of countries where vacationers put the landscapes they come to enjoy at risk.

Bolivia, Peru sign $500 mn deal for Lake Titicaca clean-up

Yahoo – AFP, January 8, 2016

Lake Titicaca, which is the highest in the world, at an altitude of 3,800 meters
(12,470 feet) above sea level, provides a habitat for a number of frogs, birds
and fish, including two species that have almost been wiped out (AFP Photo
/Aizar Raldes)

La Paz (AFP) - Bolivia and Peru agreed to provide more than $500 million towards cleaning up Lake Titicaca, whose polluted waters are home to some animals nearing extinction, a Bolivian environment official said.

The deal, which is meant to improve the lake's biodiversity, includes environmental management and recovery through to 2025.

Lake Titicaca, which is the highest in the world, at an altitude of 3,800 meters (12,470 feet) above sea level, provides a habitat for a number of frogs, birds and fish, including two species that have almost been wiped out.

Bolivia's Environment and Water Minister Alexandra Moreira and her Peruvian counterpart Manuel Pulgar signed the agreement during a public event.

"For the short term we have a limit of $117 million and for the long term $400 million," said Moreira's advisor Sergio Arispe.

“It's a logistical matter we are trying to manage through 2025," he said.

Part of the waste in the lake is generated by the Bolivian city of El Alto, near La Paz, which is home to about 800,000 people.

Peru's minister stressed that the two countries are "already taking concrete actions such as investing in water treatment plants to address the main problems the lake is facing."

Top lawyer takes on NAM over Groningen quake dangers

DutchNews, September 11, 2015

High profile lawyer Gerard Spong has made a formal complaint against gas extraction company NAM, saying he holds it responsible for deliberately damaging houses and other property in Groningen province. 

NAM, a joint venture between Shell and ExxonMobil, is in charge of extracting natural gas from large reserves under the province. Thousands of buildings have been damaged in earthquakes caused by the ground settling after the gas has been removed.

‘NAM has continued to drill in Groningen even though it is well aware of the risks, and has put dozens of lives in danger,’ Spong said. ‘This is a scandal, and the criminal courts should have their say.’ 

Various scientific reports show that the drilling is not only causing material damage but presents a real risk to people living in the province, Spong said. He is representing several private individuals and the lobby group Groninger Bodem Beweging. 

A criminal investigation is necessary because the state has a duty to protect its citizens against danger and injury, the lawyer said.

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NAM must compensate quake-hit Groningen home owners, says court

DutchNews, September 2, 2015

Gas extraction company NAM must compensate home owners in Groningen for the loss of value to their homes because of the earthquakes, whether or not they are up for sale, a court in Assen ruled on Wednesday. 

The court said NAM, a 50:50 joint venture between Shell and ExxonMobil, is responsible for the earthquakes and is therefore liable for the damage. The quakes are caused by the ground settling after the gas has been extracted. 

Local home owners, united in the WAG foundation, say 100,000 homes have been hit by the quake risk and are now worth over €1bn less than they should be. The foundation represents 12 housing corporations and some 900 private owners. 

NAM does pay compensation for visible earthquake damage and accepts house prices have gone down because of the quake risk. However, the company has refused until now to compensation home owners for intangible damage ahead of a sale. 

Values 

The court said the actual drop in values would need to be established at separate hearings and that it estimated property prices have fallen by several percentage points. WAG puts the drop at between 5% and 25%.

‘This is fantastic news,’ WAG’s lawyer Pieter Huitema told news agency ANP. ‘This is a major support to people living in the quake region.’ 

NAM can appeal against the ruling at the High Court in The Hague and the company said it is now considering what steps to take next.

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Chinese prosecutors announce probe into deadly warehouse blasts

Chinese prosecutors are to probe whether deadly blasts at a warehouse in Tianjin were due to illegal storage of dangerous materials, state media say. The explosions killed 112 people and injured hundreds.

Deutsche Welle, 16 Aug 2015

State prosecutors in China said on Sunday they had started an investigation to see whether owners of the warehouse where the explosions occurred were guilty of violating laws on the storage of hazardous chemicals.

The announcement comes as authorities confirmed that hundreds of tons of the toxic chemical sodium cyanide had been on the site of the blasts late Wednesday evening in a mostly industrial area of the northern port city of Tianjin, 120 kilometers (75 miles) east of Beijing.

Such a large amount would be a clear violation of rules cited by state media that a maximum of 10 tons of the chemical may be stored at any one time. Chinese laws on hazmat storage also stipulate that such substances should not be kept closer than 1 kilometer from residential areas and public structures.

The Chinese military is helping with cleanup operations

Sodium cyanide can form a flammable gas upon contact with water, and members of the public have questioned whether this fact had been taken into account by firefighters responding to the accident. At least 21 firefighters were among those killed in the warehouse fire and ensuing explosions, making the disaster the deadliest for the Chinese fire brigade in more than six decades.

Eighty-five of the 1,000 firefighters sent to combat the blaze remained unaccounted for on Sunday, with 88 bodies of victims still unidentified.

In addition to the 112 people confirmed dead, more than 700 people were hospitalized with sometimes serious injuries. Many were hurt by glass shattered in the huge fireballs that rose over the city on Wednesday night.

The explosions caused massive
blast waves

Official reassurances

In the face of internet rumors to the contrary, authorities have sought to reassure the public that the air in Tianjin remains safe to breathe, despite slightly raised levels of some pollutants.

In a bid to further dispel public mistrust, the Chinese premier Li Keqiang arrived in the city on Sunday afternoon and came within a kilometer of the blast site without wearing any form of protective clothing.

Li also visited those injured and displaced by the disaster.

The government has also shut down a total of 50 websites and 360 social media accounts for "creating panic by publishing unverified information or letting users spread groundless rumors," according to the Cyberspace Administration of China.

The Tianjin accident was one of the deadliest to occur in China in recent years. In June 2013, a fire at a poultry plant in the northeastern province of Jilin killed 121 people. In August 2014, 97 died in an explosion at a metal plant in eastern Jiangsu province.

tj/sgb (AP, dpa, AFP)

An aerial view of Tianjin Port, October 2012. (File photo/Xinhua)

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Indonesia Clears Path for Geothermal Energy as Power Needs Rise

Nation plans 25 tenders for new geothermal sites next year and aims to boost geothermal to 10 percent of power mix

Jakarta Globe, Michael Taylor & Wilda Asmarini, Nov 21, 2014

Jakarta. Indonesia has unveiled ambitious targets to triple geothermal power output this decade, introducing a series of land and regulatory reforms aimed at becoming the world’s largest producer of the fossil fuel alternative.

Sat atop the volcanic Pacific Ring of Fire, the world’s fourth-most populous nation is anxious to exploit geothermal energy as a clean and abundant power source as it races to attract investors and meet soaring power demand.

“With Indonesia increasingly having to import oil, coupled with a growing electricity demand, it is critical that it diversifies it base for electricity generation,” said Chris de Lavigne of consultancy Frost & Sullivan. “Indonesia has the potential to become the world’s largest producer of geothermal.”

As the world’s third-biggest geothermal producer with a capacity of 1.4 gigawatt (GW), Indonesia lags behind the Philippines and the United States with capacities of 1.9 and 3.4 GW each. Indonesia aims to up its capacity by 4.9 GW by 2019.

Yet progress has been slow due to red tape, uncompetitive power tariffs and uncertainty over asset ownership. The 25 years it has taken from the planning stage to breaking ground on its latest project show the formidable barriers the sector faces.

The government says reforms to curb the power of regional authorities to intrude on projects, as well as to make it easier to build in forest areas, should accelerate development of 25 project sites due for tender in early 2015.

“There are no more obstacles in this sector. It’s time for us to work. It is a business opportunity,” said Tisnaldi, director of geothermal, directorate general of renewable energy and energy conservation at the energy and mines ministry.

Geothermal investors hope the new government of President Joko Widodo will follow up with plans to reform power price caps in the same way it reduced subsidies for transport fuel, as well as tackle other obstacles.

“If you can lift the hurdle behind land acquisition and permits, that will help,” said Fazil Alfitri, president director at Medco Power Indonesia, a firm active in geothermal power.

Geothermal projects typically tap heat below the earth’s crust by pumping water into deep wells where it is converted into steam to drive turbines.

But they are susceptible to red-tape given they usually need long-term, complex government policy commitments. They also came under Indonesian mining laws, restricting developments in forest areas until recent amendments.

Indonesia’s plans could see geothermal meet 10 percent of power demand by 2020, up from 3 percent today. Currently about half of power supplies are met by coal, a fuel it is keen to use less in order to boost exports. Gas makes up about 20 percent and oil 12 percent.

Many geothermally active countries are planning new plants, with global capacity jumping from 2 to 12 GW since 1980.

Frost and Sullivan’s Lavigne said Indonesia’s geothermal capacity could be as high as 29 GW, almost two-thirds of the country’s current overall generation.

‘Game changer’

The $1.6 billion Sarulla project in North Sumatra, the world’s biggest, saw construction start this year, 25 years after it was first planned, delayed largely by a lack of finance and red tape.

Describing Sarulla as a “game-changer”, Shamim Razavi, an energy lawyer at Norton Rose Fulbright, said it would mean financers would be prepared to look for new projects.

Most of the biggest existing plants, such as Chevron’s Salak, are on densely populated Java island.

Sarulla will connect to the national grid, although some plants in remote spots are restricted to serving local areas. The 25 new sites set for tender in early 2015 are mostly in forest areas in Java and Sumatra. Sarulla will have a capacity of 330 MW, enough to power about 330,000 homes.

If successful, Indonesia could follow its Southeast Asian neighbor the Philippines, where geothermal fuel meets a quarter of electricity use, reducing pollution and fuel imports.

Reuters

Dutch accused of dumping chemicals in Jakarta

RNW, 29 January 2012

Indonesia's Finance Minister Agus Martowardojo has accused the Netherlands and the United Kingdom of violating the Basel Convention against the dumping of chemical waste.

The minister told reporters on Saturday that customs had impounded 113 containers of hazardous and toxic waste at the port of Tanjung Priok in Jakarta, according to a report in the Jakarta Post.

The Dutch and British governments "should have reported the shipments to Indonesia because they contained hazardous and toxic waste" under the terms of the Basel agreement, which has been in force since 1992. The 89 British and 24 Dutch containers contained mainly scrap metal contaminated with poisonous chemicals.

The Jakarta government has said it will notify the British and Dutch embassies of the find, demanding an explanation for the incompleteness of the shipload's documents. The owner of the PT HHS company which attempted to import the scrap metal into Indonesia could face a 15-year jail sentence if found guilty, Environment Minister Balthasar Kombuaya said.

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The customs office foiled the attempted smuggling of 28,200 kilograms
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Priok Port on Saturday in Jakarta. (Antara Photo/Ujang Zaelani)

Indonesian Garbage Project Helps to Save the Climate

Jakarta Globe, Christiane Oelrich, January 01, 2012

A man perches on a makeshift raft on a river covered with trash as he
 searches for materials to recycle, north of Indonesia's capital, Jakarta
 in this file photo. Residents in Tangerang are taking trash collection into
their own hands. (Reuters Photo/Supri) 

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Tangerang. Crouched and concentrated, August and Karma rip open knotted plastic bags at the foot of a big pile of rubbish.

Yoghurt cups, paper packaging, plastic, pineapple rinds, cabbage leaves, chicken bones and the like fall out. The young Indonesian men begin sorting. Organic material goes to one side, and bottles, plastic and paper to the other.

“A super job,” remarks Karma, 23. “Finally, reliable work.” The two sort their rubbish and that of their neighbors, too. For the past year, the 325 families in Griya Serpong — a working class housing area of Tangerang, a city some 40 kilometers south-west of Jakarta — have been disposing of their garbage themselves.

Municipal garbage collection was never reliable, and the residents used to dump their refuse in a vacant field — a paradise for rats, flies, mosquitoes and snakes.

Everything is different now. The roofed garbage sorting facility is a source of local pride.

“It’s got a lot cleaner here,” notes Ulil Albab, the project’s honorary chairman.

“Nobody wanted to have anything to do with rubbish before. Now we bring school kids here and show them how to compost,” Karma says.

Residents built the facility with the help of BEST, a local non-governmental organization focusing on urban poverty and community development, and BORDA (Bremen Overseas Research and Development Association), a German non-profit organization that aims to improve the living conditions of disadvantaged communities and to keep the environment intact.

At a monthly cost per family of 12,000 Indonesian rupiahs, or a little over 1 dollar, August and Karma sweep through the alleyways of Griya Serpong with their moped and trailer every day collecting garbage — 400 kilograms of it.

They compost all organic refuse at the sorting facility. It is then sold along with the plastic, glass and paper.

Agathe, 35, has made a business out of rubbish. She collects discarded detergent and noodle bags. She and her girlfriends fashion colorful handbags and wallets from them.

When everything of value has been separated out of the housing area’s refuse, no more than 30 percent remains. It is taken to a tip.

BEST Director Hamzah Harun Al Rasyid is pleased. “It’s a win-win situation,” he says. “The housing area is cleaner, there are new jobs, and there is considerably less rubbish, so we’re reducing methane emissions from the garbage tips.”

Karma and August constantly turn over the compost pile, which aerates it. This helps prevent the formation of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that makes garbage tips a big contributor to global warming.

As Indonesia’s population grows rapidly, so do the piles of garbage that are produced by the country’s more than 240 million inhabitants.

While recycling is a booming industry — for example in Germany, where it generates some 67 billion dollars in revenues annually — almost all of the Indonesian garbage is incinerated or dumped in open tips.

About 1.8 million tons of garbage is likely to be produced daily worldwide by 2025, according to BORDA. In Indonesia, 62 percent of the refuse is organic and could be composted. But there is no large-scale sorting of refuse.

Facilities like the one in Griya Serpong are catching on. The twenty-first one is to be inaugurated in the near future, and many other communities are clamoring for their own.

“We estimate that each facility like this reduces methane by 132 tons a year,” said Jati Kusumowati, who works at the BORDA office in the city of Yogyakarta. “We think they ought to be promoted internationally as well.” One way to do this might be via the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) set out in the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, which allows industrialized countries to meet their emission--reduction or limitation commitments in part by paying for emission cuts in developing countries.

A one-ton reduction in methane would earn about 13 to 16 dollars, according to Kusumowati.

But small projects such as the one in Griya Serpong would not clear the technical and bureaucratic hurdles necessary for them to be officially recognized. BORDA is now trying to get the requirements for small projects loosened.

DPA

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