Indra Harsaputra, Sidoarjo – The government-appointed agency in charge of dealing with the Sidoarjo mudflow disaster in East Java decided Monday to continue dumping mud into the Porong River, so it could be carried out to sea.

Activists and experts criticized the decision, arguing it would damage river water quality and cause sedimentation.

The National Sidoarjo Mudflow Mitigation Team (BPLS) deputy head of operations, Soffian Hadi, said the agency found a way to ensure the mudflow would not disrupt the river flow.

"We work based on the President's decree on mechanism in dealing with the mudflow. After conducting research and observation, dumping it in the Porong River was found to be safe," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Experts from Surabaya's 10 November Institute of Technology (ITS) and Japan have earlier urged the agency to stop channeling mud into the Porong River due to the environmental damage it is causing.

ITS chemistry expert, Tantowi Ismail, said the method is creating condensed mud that is insoluble in water. As a result, it is silting up the river and has formed a 1.5 to 2-meter-high delta.

He said the situation is dangerous as the river flow could be altered and cause flooding during the wet season.

In a presentation on mud management at the BPLS office, Takashi Okumura from Katahira Engineers International and Y. Kuchiwa from the TOA Corporation agreed channeling mud into the Porong River was dangerous and an alternative solution was required.

Japan has suggested a high-pressure pipeline installed with a number of pumps as a possible solution. The pipeline would direct mud out to sea and could be used in land reclamation efforts.

"The (accusations) are not true. Experts should go down to the field to look at the real situation. They should not rely solely on their laboratory research," said Soffian, a geologist from the Yogyakarta-based Veteran National Development University.

"There are silts... but they are only temporarily, since the river water will carry the material out to sea.

"Through observation we found the hot mud was flowing smoothly out to sea," he said.

The agency would soon put two machines into operation to dredge the mud, he said.

The machines, each 20 meters long and six meters wide, are equipped to break up and extract the mud.

The agency also plans to operate a six-meter-long pump from the Bandung Technology Institute, which will work to draw out hot mud to prevent silting.

"The two machines and the pump will be operational as of next week. We hope the move will produce favorable results."

Lapindo Brantas Inc., the company at the center of the disaster, currently spends around Rp 23 billion (US$2.4 million) per day channeling hot mud into the Porong River.

Soffian said the BPLS is still focusing on dumping the mud into the river and preventing it from spreading further.

"But we will continue to analyze suggestions from experts on ways to stop the mudflow."