Recently appointed minister for the environment Gusti Muhammad Hatta has a vast task ahead of him.

Despite considerable talk and the introduction some tough new protection measures in the past few years, there are few signs of any improvement in the state of the nation's environment.

Hardly a week goes by without the publication of yet another depressing report, highlighting the rapid decline in the health of this country's natural resources.

It would be hard for any new minister to know where to start. But Hatta has pledged to pay particular attention to climate change, forest fires and critical river basins during his first 100 days in office.

Rapid population growth and appalling misuse that is unsustainable have seriously decreased the environmental quality water in Indonesia.

Experts say that if these problems are not immediately addressed, chronic water pollution will surely spell disaster for local communities, causing increased scarcity of fresh drinking water, increased disease and a decrease in food production.

Never has the situation been more critical, with at least 80 percent of Indonesia's 250 million people without access to piped water. A large proportion of Indonesians are dependent on rivers for all of their water needs.

Infrastructural shortcomings mean there is limited access to clean water for millions of people who have to use rivers and lakes for drinking water, bathing, washing, agriculture and even recreation.

There is no doubt that Indonesia's rivers are in a severe crisis and the new minister is right to face this challenge as a matter of urgency.

The once gently flowing river Citarum in West Java is one alarming example.

Less than 30 years ago it was a place where fishermen cast their nets, sea birds came to feed and visitors were left speechless by its beauty.

Villagers busily collected water for their simple homes, and rice paddies thrived on its extensive network of irrigation channels.

Today, the Citarum choked by the domestic waste of nine million people and thick with the cast-off from hundreds of factories.

It is often cited as the world's dirtiest river.

So dense is the carpet of refuse that the tiny wooden fishing craft that float through provide the only evidence of the presence of any water.

The boats aren't carrying any fishermen. A more profitable business is foraging for rubbish that can be salvaged and sold - these collectors face the risk of contracting disease for the few dollars they might earn for trading plastic bottles, broken chair legs, rubber gloves and the like.

More than 500 factories, many of them producing textiles that require chemical treatment, line the banks of the 200-mile river, close to Jakarta and the largest waterway in West Java, spewing waste into the water.

And if the chemicals are not bad enough, all the other kinds of garbage from the factories and the people who work there spill into it every day.

Everything goes into the river from toxic waste to human waste.

The filthy water is sucked into the rice paddies, while families risk their health by collecting it for drinking, cooking and washing.

The Citarum's downfall began with rapid industrialization during the late 1980s. This impressive river soon became a garbage bin for the factories.

And the dreadful effect on the Citarum is fast spreading. It is one of two major rivers that feed Lake Saguling, where the largest power generator in West Java has been built.

Experts predict that as the river chokes, its water volumes will decrease and the generator will be prevented from functioning properly, causing massive power outages.

Public health specialists are becoming increasingly alarmed by the acceleration in waterborne illnesses.

All the more pity that the Asian Development Bank's US$500 million package of support to clean up the Citarum has found itself in troubled waters. This important project is badly needed, and it is critical that accusations made by NGOs that some of the funds have fallen into the wrong hands are adequately addressed and any wrongdoing is halted.

The arrival of a new environment minister with a commitment to tackle the nation's rivers is good news for the Citarum. Hatta has a difficult job ahead of him as he brings together the plethora of stakeholders, not all of who see eye to eye.

But he must be resolute and not allow the promise to resolve this crisis to become yet another unfulfilled political dream.

Jonathan Wootliff leads the corporate accountability practice at the consulting firm, Reputation Partners. He specializes in sustainable development and in building of productive relationships between companies and NGOs. He can be contacted at jonathan@reputationpartners.com

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