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Environment ministry to appeal air pollution verdict
Ruling on a citizen lawsuit on Thursday, judges found senior officials were culpable in failing to prevent, monitor and control unhealthy pollution levels in and around the capital.
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Hot talk -- Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya discusses forest and environment conservation efforts in a meeting at the Environment and Forestry Ministry in Jakarta recently. (Tempo/-)
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nvironment and Forestry Ministry said on Friday it would appeal a Jakarta court ruling that found President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, several ministries and top local officials guilty of environmental negligence over chronic air pollution.
Ruling on a citizen lawsuit on Thursday, judges found senior officials were culpable in failing to prevent, monitor and control unhealthy pollution levels in and around the capital.
Jakarta and its surrounds, a sprawling metropolis of more than 30 million people, is Southeast Asia's most polluted city, according to a 2020 report by air quality monitor IQAir
Dasrul Chaniago, the environment and forestry ministry's director for air pollution management, confirmed to Reuters an appeal would be made against the decision.
He said the court ordered the ministry to monitor air quality and emissions, actions that he said had been undertaken since 2011 in Jakarta and other cities such as Banten and Bandung.
Fadjroel Rahman, a spokesman for the President, said his office would defer to the environment ministry on whether to appeal. The health and home affairs ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Lawyers for the 32 plaintiffs had argued that authorities had failed to protect citizens, pointing to scientific research that air pollution could cause asthma and heart disease and lower life expectancy.
