New mudflow reservoirs not urgent: Mud agency

Indra Harsaputra , The Jakarta Post , Sidoarjo | Fri, 09/26/2008 11:02 AM | East Java

The construction of three proposed 100-hectare mud-catching reservoirs in Sidoarjo is not urgent because an existing reservoir is able to cope with the daily mud production of up to 100,000 cubic meters for another year, an official has said.

Operation affairs deputy chairman of the government-backed Sidoarjo Mud Mitigation Agency (BPLS) Soffian Hadi said the agency would likely begin constructing the new reservoirs once a vacant 300-hectare section inside the existing 670-hectare resevoir had been filled.

"The most important thing is how to speed up the reinforcement work on the 13-meter high circular dike (surrounding the resevoir) to avoid any landslides so that the vacant section can intercept and retain hot mud from the mining leakages," he told The Jakarta Post recently.

He said some 300 workers, several units of heavy equipment and dozens of dump trucks would continue working during the Idul Fitri holidays until the giant dike had been successfully reinforced.

Once the remaining vacant section has been filled, it will be impossible to increase the capacity of the dike because its resistance to land slides is quite limited, Soffian said.

During a recent meeting between acting Governor Setia Purwoko and a small legislative team tasked by the House of Representatives to monitor the handling of the mudflow, both sides proposed the construction of three new mud reservoirs in Besuki, Pejarakan and Kedungcangkring villages.

The government has reportedly allocated Rp 1.8 trillion (US$193 million) for the new project, including for land clearance in the three villages.

Soffian said the three new reservoirs would have a combined capacity to receive 134 days' worth of hot mud.

Asked to comment on a new damage-limitation concept introduced by the state-run Sepuluh November Institute of Technology (ITS) in Surabaya, Soffian said the BPLS considered that draining mud via the River Porong into the sea was the most effective option as the mining site would continue to spew mud for the next 20 years.

The ITS has suggested that channeling the mudflow into wetlands in the south of the regency would produce fertile farmland in the region.

The concept of channeling hot mud into the river has been met with strong opposition from locals, who say their villages will become susceptible to flash floods during the rainy season.

They have also called on the government and PT Lapindo Brantas Inc. to pay compensation to mudflow victims whose assets, including homes and land, have been devastated in the disaster.