Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government has announced a new scheme to rank cities based on air quality, in an effort to push local administrations to cut pollution.
State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar said Tuesday the new initiative would at first include only 11 cities and municipalities that already have installed air monitoring devices.
"The rankings will help show whether or not the administrations have developed sustainable transportation systems in order to cut air pollution in urban areas," the ministry's deputy assistant for mobile sources emission pollution control, Ridwan Tamin, told The Jakarta Post.
He said the new program would measure traffic conditions, pollutant levels, including sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter, as well as the number of air monitoring stations and the health impact of air pollution.
"We will also examine policies issued relating to air pollution to determine awareness levels of administrations and the total budget allocated to monitor air quality," Ridwan said.
The ministry's team, which will involve transportation experts and non-governmental organizations, is scheduled to inspect targeted areas from May to August.
"We expect to announce the results to the public in September," Ridwan said.
The government has repeatedly pushed local administrations to revitalize transportation systems to cut down vehicle emissions, which are major contributors to air pollution.
It wants administrations to introduce eco-friendly public transportation that can be enjoyed by all levels of society.
The ministry earlier pointed to Jakarta's busway system as an example of a sustainable transportation system, if managed properly.
The busway features a number of buses using eco-friendly compressed natural gas (CNG), and is part of an envisioned mass rapid transit (MRT) system officials hope will resolve long-standing transportation problems in the capital. The future MRT may also include a subway, monorail and water taxis.
Jakarta is the first city in Indonesia to have a busway system. The capital also issued a bylaw on air pollution control in 2005. The bylaw requires all private cars to obtain emissions tests twice a year, and mandates the use of CNG for public transportation vehicles.
However, there is still not full implementation of the bylaw because of poor law enforcement and a lack of support infrastructure.
The Jakarta administration recorded only 48 good air quality days last year, up from 28 good days in 2005.
Data from the environment ministry shows that in 2005, Surabaya recorded 21 good air quality days, Bandung 40 days, Medan 24 days and Semarang 229 days.
The ministry earlier said the air quality ranking system was part of its plan to include air quality in the annual Adipura environmental awards.
Currently, the awards only recognize the cleanest and greenest cities based on waste management.
Targeted Areas
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