T

he Indonesian Navy has intercepted two ships and an oil barge suspected of dumping waste in Bintan waters, off the Riau Islands.

Sea Security Unit commander First Adm. Pranyoto said on Friday that his unit received reports from citizens of waste being dumped on Wednesday, before intercepting the vessels the next day.

The Navy, which is part of the Western Fleet’s Sea Security Unit, deployed the KRI Pulau Rangsang and KRI Pulau Rusa ships to conduct surveillance on the vessels.

“Crew members of the tugboat that was towing the barge said their engine had stalled, but we did not believe them as they did not report the engine failure,” Pranyoto said.

The seized vessels consisted of the Singapore-registered Britoil 41 and 120 tugboats. Both were towing an oil barge named Khalid E Fers, registered in the Pacific island state of Tuvalu.

Crew members told Navy officers that they were on the way from China to the Persian Gulf. They were stranded in Bintan waters as one of the boats encountered engine trouble, but they did not drop anchor. The convoy stopped just eight nautical miles off Sebong Bay while waiting for repairs.

“They had entered Indonesian waters without reporting. If their engine had actually stalled, they should have sent an emergency signal and requested for help from the nearest authorities. That’s the standard procedure at sea and the nearest authority is obliged to help,” Pranyoto said.

The dumping of oil sludge or waste from tanker-cleaning activities has been reportedly rife in the Riau Islands.

The dumped oil has polluted the sea and believed to have killed fish and other marine life.

Riau Islands administration has reportedly suffered significant losses due to the activity. The Lagoi integrated-resort area has recently been forced to close as its coast has been polluted by oil sludge allegedly dumped by ships.

Separately, in Riau, thousands of fish in the Tapung River have been found dead in recent days, believed to have been caused by the palm oil plant of state-run PTPN V Kebun Tandun in Kasikan village, Paung Hulu district, Kampar regency.

Kasikan resident Aidil Arif said indications of pollution were obvious as water that was originally clear had turned murky and smelly.

“The palm oil plant, located upstream, has been operating since March 2004. The river water would not have changed had the factory not intentionally dumped waste into the river,” Aidil claimed Friday.

He said thousands of fish died every time the water changed color.

Aidil said villagers had protested to the company and filed a complaint to related agencies and the Kampar regency council, to no avail.

“PTPN V promised not to dump waste into the river, but they betrayed that promise,” he said.

Kasikan village secretary Al Hudri said that besides damage to river life, residents also could not use the river water for their daily needs.

“The anger among villagers has peaked and they intended to attack the plant. Fortunately, we could calm them down,” he said.

Kampar regency councilor Sunardi DS said that he had reported the alleged pollution to the regent.

“This cannot be tolerated, as its impacts are not only felt by Kasikan residents, but also those in Sungai Agung, Petapahan and Batugajah villages, where the Tapung River passes through,” he said.

PTPN V factory general manager Tengku Amran denied the company had polluted the river and said only water was disposed of in the river.

“The water is not regarded as waste. It has been sterilized and free of toxic substances,” he said.