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View all search resultsLapindo task force focuses on mudflow pond's stability amid extreme weather
Water and mud are discharged periodically into the Porong River to maintain the retention pond's capacity.
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An aerial photo shows a containment pond at the center of the Lapindo mudflow eruption site in Porong, Sidoarjo, East Java, on Feb. 8, 2026. The Environment Ministry says it will soon prepare a Strategic Environmental Assessment as part of its efforts to manage the Lapindo mud disaster, which continues to spew hot mud from underground. (Antara/Umarul Faruq)
T
he Sidoarjo Mudflow Control Center (PPLS) is taking measures to mitigate the Lapindo mudflow in Sidoarjo, East Java, to prevent it from overflowing and damaging nearby settlements and important infrastructure during the current extreme weather.
The steps include operating pumps, raising the elevation of retention ponds, disposing of mud and excess water in the Porong River and daily monitoring of the embankment structure.
“The mudflow is still coming out but not as strong as in the past. The gush is slow but still bursting forth,” PPLS head Mahdani said on Tuesday, as quoted by kompas.com.
“Each year, we manage some 24 million cubic meters to maintain the stability of the retention pond.”
He added that mud management by disposal into the Porong River was done periodically to prevent the retention pond from becoming too shallow, thus reducing its capacity.
“If we do not dispose of the mud into the Porong River, it will get higher over time,” he said.
“If there’s, let’s say, 100 millimeters of rainfall, overtopping could occur and this is dangerous.”
