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AKARTA: Jakarta seems to be cursed by 13 rivers that flow to various areas in the capital because the rivers have become a source of environmental problems, according to Dr. Firdaus Ali, an expert on environmental issues at the University of Indonesia.

"Many residents occupy areas along riverbanks in Jakarta and they are unable to keep the rivers clean," he said in a discussion on pollution in Jakarta recently.

The situation, he said, was different from that in most advanced countries where land along rivers was regarded a valuable asset that had to be kept clean, he said.

The 13 rivers are Cakung, Jati Kramat, Buaran, Sunter, Cipinang, Ciliwung, Cideng, Krukut, Grogol, Sekretaris, Pesanggrahan, Mookervart and Angke.

Meanwhile, a professor at University of Indonesia's School of Health, Prof. Umar Fachmi Achmadi, said the poor waste disposal system or badly managed waste disposal had caused a decline in the quality of well and surface water, kompas.com reported.

"The World Bank in 2007 indicated that less than 3 percent of Jakarta residents had no or inadequate access to a waste disposal system that met requirements. Most of them use septic tanks," he said.

"It's no surprise, therefore, to hear people say that Jakarta residents occupy areas on a *drainage ditch' because 90 percent of the shallow wells in Jakarta have been contaminated," he pointed out, adding that "along a number of rivers, like the Ciliwung River in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta, one can easily find houses built exactly on the riverbank."

Residents living in riverbank houses conduct daily activities, such disposing of garbage and washing clothes in the river, leaving the river water murkier and contaminated.