While no one knows when the hot mud in Sidoarjo regency will stop gushing from the bowels of the earth, efforts have to be made to handle the increasing volume of the sludge so that it does not endanger the lives of people living nearby or damage the environment.
The amount of mud keeps increasing every day, with an additional 50,000 cubic meters a day. With the increasing amount of sludge, the levees that were holding back the mud have collapsed in several places.
The mud has reached 4 million cubic meters, according to experts at the Surabaya Institute of Technology (ITS).
A joint team tasked with handling the mud plans to double the size of the existing ponds of some 180 hectares to around 360 hectares, and also build stronger levees around the ponds to accommodate the expanding mud, which has reached 7 million cubic meters, according to experts deployed at the scene.
The expansion of the ponds and the strengthening of the walls, according to Aris Setyadi from the Public Works Ministry, are precautionary measures ahead of the rainy season, which is expected to start in November.
Meanwhile, Sidoarjo Regent Win Hendrarso said the enlargement of the ponds would mean a total of seven villages in three districts, all in his regency, would have to be submerged. They are Jatirejo, Mindi and Renokenongo – all in Porong district – Besuki, Pejarakan and Kedung Cangkringin in Jabon district – and Kedung Bendo in Tanggulanin district.
"What can we do? Rather than allowing the mud to spill over into more areas, we decided to submerge those villages. We hope this problem will not drag on too long," Win said. He explained that the ponds would form a triangle. "Just like the Bermuda Triangle," he said, jokingly.
With the increasing amount of sludge in the pond, the government has granted permission to Lapindo Brantas Inc., the company whose drilling activities caused the mudflow, to separate the water from the mud and dump the water into the sea – some 17 kilometers away – provided that the water is treated to remove any toxic substances.
According to experts, 70 percent of the mud is water, and therefore, separating the water from the solid substance and dumping the water into the sea would help reduce the danger of the mud to the people nearby.
However, several environmental activists as well as farmers in Sidoarjo, especially fishermen and shrimp farmers, have rejected the idea, arguing that it would destroy the sea ecosystem and would eventually affect the income of the fishermen and shrimp farmers.
Ali Subhan, an environmental activist and a shrimp farmer himself, argued that the news that Lapindo had polluted the area with the mudflow had prompted shrimp importers in Europe to stop buying shrimps from Sidoarjo, the only area in the country to obtain a certificate for organic shrimp farming.
"Moreover, if they learn of the plan to dump the mud water in the Porong river or in the sea, it could be the end of our shrimp business," he said.
Even if no one rejects Lapindo's planned disposal of the mud, the company faces the daunting task of treating the huge amount of mud by separating the water from the solid matter. It would require a lot of investment to build facilities to separate the water, to treat it and then pipe it into the sea.
The solid waste would pose another problem. Experts have been marshaled to research the possible use of the mud as a building material, and the results so far seem positive. However, the company is uncertain whether or not the solid mud contains toxic substances.
"If it contains toxic substances, we have no idea as yet what do to with it. Hopefully, it will be safe enough for people to use it as a building material or other purposes," said Rawindra, Lapindo general manager for East Java.