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Power rates put health at risk
In 2012, 60,000 people died prematurely because of air pollution. The damage could be irreversible if environmental control is relaxed in the effort to reduce electricity prices.
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In 2012, 60,000 people died prematurely because of air pollution. The damage could be irreversible if environmental control is relaxed in the effort to reduce electricity prices. (Shutterstock/-)
T
he Directorate General of Electricity is reviewing electricity prices set in power purchasing agreements with large independent power producers, of which coal-fired power plant projects have yet to begin construction and have not been given a Business Feasibility Certificate from the Finance Ministry.
To protect the environment, this review needs to be monitored closely to ensure that environmental protection is not compromised in the effort to cut electricity prices. Coal-fired power plants pollute the air and produce toxic waste that threatens the health and safety of people living around the plants. Just like in aviation, safety should not be compromised by reducing maintenance costs.
Implementing air pollution control in coal-fired power plants is costly, reaching as high as 25 percent of the overall cost of power plant construction. However, environmental protection is paramount, especially in maintaining the health of residents who are potentially affected.
A study conducted by the Association of People’s Emancipation and Ecological Action (AEER) in an area near a coal-fired plant in the West Java regency of Indramayu found 21 children suffered from lung spots based on X-ray photos.
In 2012, 60,000 people died prematurely because of air pollution. This number could increase along with the increasing number of coal-fired power plants built under the Fast Track Program phase 1 and stage 2 of the previous administration under president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, as well as the latest 35,000 megawatts Electricity Program under the current administration of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, as most of the plants are coal-fired. The damage could be irreversible if environmental control is relaxed in the effort to reduce electricity prices.
Currently Indonesia has a weaker air emissions standard compared to coal-fired countries such as China and India. It is much more lax compared to Japan and other developed countries that mostly finance and operate coalfired power plants in Indonesia.
It is necessary to improve regulating emissions from coal-fired power plants. Currently regulated under the Minister of Environment Regulation No. 21/2008 on the standard of emissions for business and thermal power generation activities, the emission standard is under revision.
