Environmental woes the result of urbanisation in Jakarta, KL
FARMLAND is being paved over for roads, houses and factories, while hills and mountains are being turned into farmland.
This environmental situation in Indonesia was cited by an Indonesian journalist at a seminar here yesterday.
Mr A. Mahadi of TVRI (Television, Republic of Indonesia), also said urbanization and other development pressures had made Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, the world’s seventh most polluted city, even though only about 20 tonnes of rubbish were collected there each day.
Some steps to fight the environmental problem included the government’s formation of a board last month to control pollution and impending legislation against dumping of industrial wastes.
Mr Mahadi said the mass media and non-governmental organizations helped spread the environmental message throughout Indonesia.
"We need to find a new approach, to give a new perspective and allow us to pull away from the conventional way of thinking as the environmental issue is at a serious stage," he said of the task ahead.
In all, three papers were presented yesterday by journalists from Indonesia and Malaysia. These dealt with whether environmental protection, industrialization and development could go together.
A common theme was coping with urbanization and pollution by vehicles and factories; another was balancing logging, mining and agricultural developments with care for the environment.
The four-day seminar, Environmental Protection and Liberal Market Economy, is attended by Asean and Asian journalists. It ends at the Marina Mandarin Hotel today..
Mr Rusdi Mustapha, a reporter from the Sunday Mail, said many of Malaysia’s environmental problems also stemmed from urbanization.
"Pollution from vehicles and factories in turn leads to acid rain," he said, adding that solid wastes were straining already overtaxed landfills.
In rural areas, soil erosion, chemical contamination by pesticides, overuse of fertilizers and illegal logging were major concerns.
Recycling, the use of lead-free petrol, enforcement of environmental legislation and intensive education aimed at students were some steps being taken to strike the balance between development and environmental protection.
Source : The Straits Times, December 26, 1990
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