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View all search resultsEast Jakartans bemoan trash pileup at Kramat Jati market
The 6-meter trash pile near Kramat Jati market in East Jakarta was not the only one to be observed across the city, which has its waste management disrupted by the Idul Fitri holiday and the fatal landslide at Bantar Gebang landfill in Bekasi, West Java in early March.
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Workers walk past piles of garbage on Wednesday at Kramat Jati market in East Jakarta. (JP/Iqro Rinaldi)
F
or Leny, who lives next to the Kramat Jati wholesale market in East Jakarta, opening windows every morning usually helps her family bring some fresh air into their house.
But in the past month, all they can smell is the stench from a mountain of wet garbage that is now reaching up to 6 meters high, causing foul smells to spread throughout the market and nearby houses.
“Foul smells are like our daily meal,” said Leny, 44, on March 30, whose house is located just meters from the garbage mountain.
Complaints came not only from Leny, but also other women in the area who regularly recite Quran regularly in a nearby musholla (prayer room). They were forced to find a new place for their religious activity because of the smell.
The situation worsens when it rains, which has occurred frequently in Jakarta in the last few weeks as the city saw the peak of the rainy season. After at least an hour of rain, the river water behind the market overflowed and carried rotting fruits and vegetables from the pile of trash to nearby houses.
“Children are more vulnerable. The trash in the floodwater always makes my children’s feet itchy and scabby,” said Leny, a mother of three, adding residents had repeatedly complained to Kramat Jati’s management but had not received a helpful response about the issue.
According to the Jakarta administration, the garbage has been piling up near Kramat Jati market because of technical problems, with trucks assigned to carry the trash to the landfill since March 9. The issue caused trash from the market, which produces up to 150 tonnes of waste per day, piling up with its weight reaching around 6,970 tonnes.
