Jakarta to manage Bantar Gebang

JAKARTA. The Jakarta Administration will manage Bantar Gebang waste treatment facility in Bekasi, West Java, by itself after terminating the contracts of the two operators of the facility, PT Godang Tua Jaya (GTJ) and Navigat Organic Energy Indonesia (NOEI), an official has said.

Jakarta Sanitation Agency head Isnawa Adji said on Wednesday that the 6,000 tons of garbage produced daily in the city would be handled by the agency’s Integrated Waste Management Unit at the 108-hectare waste treatment facility.

“We will work with experts, who are expected to help the unit manage the waste facility. We want them to give technical advice to the new management of the facility,” Isnawa told The Jakarta Post.

The administration terminated the contracts on Tuesday, after the agency issued a third warning letter to the company to improve waste treatment.

According to an audit by Pricewaterhouse Coopers, the two companies have not fulfilled their responsibilities under the contract. In particular, the companies have failed to develop a gasification landfill anaerobic digestion (galfad) facility.

Isnana also said that under the new management, the salaries of workers Bantar Gebang would increase. Previously, Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama has promised to pay workers the provincial minimum wage.

Besides the new management, the city also issued new policies covering the welfare of workers, trash scavengers and residents who live around the landfills. The workers and scavengers will receive healthcare insurance under the Healthcare and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan).