Alifia Sekar, Jakarta – The sky was clear and the ocean calm when The Jakarta Post visited North Jakarta's fishing village of Cilincing last week. Some fishermen who had just returned from sea seemed to be enjoying the gentle sea breeze while sipping hot coffee.

Although that particular day in their lives seemed tranquil, the reality is far from it: Cilincing's fishing community has been seeing a significant drop in their catches in recent years as various types of waste, including industrial, continue to flow into Jakarta Bay.

"This year is the worst. Industrial waste has continually polluted the sea for around three months, while it used to last seven days in years past," community leader Danu Waluyo told the Post on July 16.

He explained that harmful waste had been flowing into the waters off Cilincing since Ramadan in April, killing tonnes of fish and prompting more than 1,000 local fishers to avoid heading out to sea.

"Insisting on going to sea is pointless, as we could simply end up wasting our money on fuel," Danu said.

And although he had reported the situation to the Jakarta Environmental Agency, aside from a handful of officers that came to collect some water samples, presumably for laboratory testing and analysis, no further action had been taken to date.

It was only this month that the waste began petering out and the fishermen were finally able to resume fishing activities, said Danu.

Industrial pollution was not a new problem for coastal communities in Cilincing, said Suwandi, who noted that waste flows had been a recurring issue since 2005.

"But back then, waste only [flowed into] the ocean during the rainy season, when heavy rains pushed [a greater amount of waste] into waterways. Now, even during the dry season, the sea continues to be polluted," said the 37-year-old fisherman.

Both Danu and Suwandi had no idea where the waste originated, saying they could only try and gauge its effect on the local fish population by the color of the sea.

"If the sea is red or black, fish can usually still escape somewhere farther. But if [it's] white, the fish will for sure die and float to the surface," Danu explained.

For the Cilincing fishermen, most of whom use small boats and rely on their daily catches for their livelihood, the impacts of the rising volume of waste flowing into Jakarta Bay over the years has been disastrous.

The resulting pollution has led to a drastic decline in the local fish population and forced them head out farther than the usual 5-kilometers from the coast to fish, increasing their operating costs and the risk to their small boats from sailing deeper waters.

"Oftentimes, when fishermen can't go to sea because of the waste, they have to change jobs and become waste pickers or construction workers so they can still put food on their tables," Danu said.

Sri Hayyu Alynda, head of environmental pollution and damage control at the Thousand Islands Environmental Agency, said a team from her office, together with the North Jakarta Environmental Agency, had tested seawater samples taken from the areas that the Cilincing fishermen had reported.

"However, we did not find any fish deaths due to the polluted water or the industrial waste," she told the Post on July 18, adding that her team had found only trash near the harbor and oil leaks from boat engines.

'Proof of negligence'

Various studies have tested for pollution in the waters off Cilincing, which is located on the estuary of the Cakung River, and discovered the presence of E. coli bacteria as well as biochemical and chemical oxygen demand exceeding the safe levels as set in relevant regulations.

A 2016 study found that wastewater discharges from manufacturing, plastic and paper factories had contributed to an increase in pollutant levels in the Cilincing waters.

The problem is not exclusive to Cilincing, however. A 2021 study found high concentrations of paracetamol in Jakarta Bay, especially in the waters off Ancol and Muara Angke, raising concerns about their impact on local shellfish farms.

In 2015, thousands of dead fish washed up on Ancol Beach, and it was determined that the marine animals had died due to toxic contamination from untreated industrial and household waste dumped into nearby rivers.

The Jakarta Environmental Agency reported last year that many industrial businesses and office buildings were still dumping their waste directly into rivers, though it did not identify the major polluting entities. In addition to industrial waste, the report found that the city's rivers were also polluted by gray water from households containing untreated contaminants, such as detergents.

Prigi Arisandi, executive director of Ecological Observation and Wetlands Conservation (Ecoton) lambasted Jakarta's worsening waste problem from its rivers to the bay as "proof of the negligence and failure of the central government".

He also called on Jakarta's residents to consider mounting legal challenges against relevant government institutions, including the Environment and Forestry Ministry and the Public Works and Housing Ministry, as well as the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Ministry.

In 2019, Ecoton filed a lawsuit against the East Java governor, the environment ministry and public works ministry for mass fish deaths in the Brantas River due to industrial pollution.

The Surabaya District Court ruled that the officials were guilty of negligence in overseeing the river's ecosystem, but the governor and environment ministry have reportedly filed a cassation petition with the Supreme Court, which was rejected earlier this month.

Source: https://asianews.network/jakartas-fishers-battle-rising-pollution-as-government-turns-blind-eye