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Activists slam Samosir regency for sending waste to protected forest as pollution hits Lake Toba
Environmental activists have condemned the alleged illegal use of protected forest as a final disposal site by the Samosir administration in North Sumatra, calling on the administration to put an end to it as pollution hits the tourism area surrounding Lake Toba.
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A fisherman paddles across Lake Toba, North Sumatra, Indonesia. (Shutterstock/DH Saragih)
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nvironmental activists have condemned the alleged illegal use of protected forest as a final disposal site (TPA) by the Samosir regency in North Sumatra, calling on the administration to put an end to the practice as pollution hits the tourism area surrounding the famous Lake Toba.
Samosir Green Community coordinator Fernando Sitanggang claimed the protected forest, located near Lake Toba, had been used to dispose of waste for years and had troubled residents in the area because of its stench and water pollution.
He said his community and residents had protested against the practice many times to the regency administration, but to no avail.
"Up to this day, waste disposal in the protected forest is still going on. We're worried that if we let this go on, it will negatively affect the surrounding environment, especially near Lake Toba," Fernando told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
He claimed that about five tons of waste had been left in the dump site in the protected forest, mainly from households, offices and the tourism sector.
He said the Samosir administration had previously dumped waste at a site near residential areas in the Panguruan district, earning protests from the residents. The protests prompted the administration to turn the protected forest into a dumpsite, Fernando said, lambasting the administration for not having a clear waste management solution.
"It's a wonder how the Samosir administration seems unable to find another place to dispose of the waste, when the region is so vast. Why turn an area in the protected forest into a waste disposal site?" he asked.
