Raw Water in West Tarum Canal Heavily Polluted

KOMPAS/RYAN RINALDY

A riverbank resident is seen on Dec. 26, 2018 in a makeshift enclosure on the banks of the Kali Malang in West Cikarang district, Bekasi regency, West Java. These makeshift enclosures, which serve as bathing and toilet facilities, are commonly found along the banks of the river.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Amid the global competition, Jakarta is still grappling with basic issues. It is believed that the raw water supply for residents of the capital and parts of Bekasi is polluted.

The raw water for supplying drinking water to residents in Jakarta and parts of Bekasi is becoming increasingly polluted. The water pollution in the West Tarum Canal, or the Kali Malang (river), is far higher than the government’s maximum threshold.

In the two samplings taken in 2018, the Jakarta Environment Agency found fecal coliform concentrations of respectively 390,000 colony forming units (CFU) per 100 milliliters and 1 million CFU per 100 ml.

The agency’s maximum threshold for fecal coliform, or Escherichia coli (E. coli), is 1,000 CFU per 100 ml. The agency’s findings were also higher than the threshold stipulated in Government Regulation (PP) No. 82/2001 on water quality and pollution management.

The Kali Malang is deemed to have a strategic value, as it supplies clean water to a majority of Jakartans through a pipeline.

In 2018, the river supplied 532 million cubic meters (cbm) of raw water under the management of private water company PT Aetra, and 193 million cbm of raw water under private water company PT Palyja. Jakarta currently has a raw water shortage of around 536 million cbm.

Despite being Jakarta’s primary source of raw water, the river’s water quality has not been improved. The Jakarta Environment Agency’s data from 2012 to 2017 shows that the fecal coliform concentration in the Kali Malang ranges from 5,750 CFU per 100 ml to 340,000 CFU per 100 ml. The highest concentration was measured in 2018 at 1 million per CFU 100 ml, 1,000 times higher than the agency’s threshold of 1,000 CFU per 100 ml.

Kompas requested that a water sample from the Kali Malang be tested at PT ALS Indonesia’s laboratory in Sentul, West Java. The sampling was taken from the Kali Malang near Jl. Mayor Madmuin Hasibuan in Bekasi and tested by ALS Indonesia’s lab technicians on Tuesday (1/22/2019) at 2:30 p.m. The sampling was taken in conditions of light rain, as several hours of heavy rain had fallen in Bekasi since 11 a.m.

The test on the Kali Malang water sample found a fecal coliform concentration of 3,000 CFU per 100 ml, three times the drinking water threshold of 1,000 CFU per 100 ml.

Kali Malang raw water management company Jasa Tirta II found that the river’s biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) was over the drinking water threshold, which is less than 2-3 mg/L. The BOD ranged from 3.3 mg/L to 6.2 mg/L in the six samples it took in 2018.

Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) environment expert Suprihatin said that the BOD level indicated a level of organic pollution that could kill fishes, emit a foul odor, maintain low pH and several other effects.

With respect to the fecal coliform concentration, Suprihatin said that the Kali Malang should not be used as a raw water supply, as it did not fulfill the criterion for drinking water. “The high level of fecal coliform in the raw water indicates a high level of pollutants. It does not fulfill the requirement for [water] treatment,” said Suprihatin.

Riverbank

The poor water quality of the Kali Malang corresponds with the conditions Kompas found upon observing the riverbank from its source in Purwakarta, West Java, to its mouth in East Jakarta. In Bekasi, several semi-permanent buildings were found on its banks. In Karawang, West Java, Kompas found semi-permanent public toilets (MCKs). “The locals here take water [from the Kali Malang] for washing and bathing,” said Cerman, 50, of Wadas village in Teluk Jambe district, Karawang.

Cerman does not use the water for drinking or cooking, as he sees it is dirty. The local residents were also generally aware that they should not pollute the river. However, due to the lack of toilet facilities in the area, many still bathe and defecate in the river.

Assistant manager for water resource management Brahmada Siregar at Jasa Tirta II said that the condition of the West Kali Malang was not much better than at its head water. The water of the Kali Malang traveled through three separate dams: the Saguling, Cirata and Jatiluhur dams.

The president director of Jakarta’s clean water company PAM Jaya, Priyatno Bambang Hernowo, said that the capital did not have many options for its raw water supply. The alternative sources, he said, were also polluted with fecal coliform.

At this point, water treatment played a huge role. Raw water polluted with fecal coliform could be treated properly for use by Jakartans. “Prior to treating, the water has undergone a pre-treatment process to reduce pollution. The water is now safe for use,” he said. (ADY/DVD/BKY/HLN/MDN)