Singapore looks to Taipei as unlikely model for cleanliness

Want China Times, CNA 2015-01-31

A worker cleans Taipei Main Station, July 24, 2009. (Photo/Chen Chih-yuan)

Singapore is well known for its strict rules intended to keep its streets clean, so it may come as a surprise that activists in the city-state are looking to Taipei as an example of how to maintain a trash-free city.

But Liak Teng Lit, chairman of Singapore's non-governmental Public Hygiene Council, told the Straits Times that his country has "let things deteriorate until we now have a crisis of cleanliness," a reference to the massive amount of trash left strewn about last weekend after a music festival.

In contrast, Liak said that on a recent trip to Taiwan, he and other council members learned that "cleaning is a part of education," adding that it "teaches the value of labor and that it is not shameful to sweat."

He praised Taipei for keeping its streets clean with only 5,000 professional cleaners looking after a city of almost 3 million people, whereas Singapore has a small army of 70,000 cleaners for its population of 5 million.

The praise echoes remarks made by William Wan, co-founder of the Singapore Kindness Movement that works with Liak's organization, who said earlier in the month that trash left after New Year's celebrations showed that Singapore needs to transform from a "cleaned city" to a "clean city."

Revelers who left a "meadow of trash" at the Gardens by the Bay this past weekend told the Straits Times they littered because they saw other people doing it and assumed somebody would come by to collect it.

On Wednesday, Singapore's prime minister Lee Hsien Loong took to Facebook to draw attention to the sad scene left after the Laneway music festival.

"All of us can play a part in picking up our own litter, educating our children and grandchildren, and reminding others to do the right thing," the prime minister wrote.

Kinmen's Lieyu introduces 100 electric vehicles for rent

Want China Times, CNA 2014-05-05

Electric scooters in Lieyu. (Photo/CNA)

Visitors to the outlying county of Kinmen can start enjoying the scenery while helping to protect it thanks to 100 new electric-powered scooters on the island of Lieyu that will be rented out by the hour starting Sunday.

The green energy option for the 14.8-square kilometer township is part of Kinmen's major projects to build a low-emissions environment on the islands off the shore of China.

Officials said the scooters can travel up to 60km on one charge. When they enter formal service in June, non-Kinmen residents will be able to pay NT$150 (US$5) for the first four hours of use and NT$10 (US$0.33) per each hour afterward. The initial cost for locals will be NT$100 (US$3.30).

The rental will come with a NT$50 (US$1.60) "carbon coupon" that can be used at participating stores on the island.

The launch of the electric vehicles is intended to prevent an influx of motor scooters to Lieyu, also called Little Kinmen, said Li Tseng-tsai, a high-ranking official in the county government.

Li added that the government will add eight electric buses by the end of the year and work to introduce more privately owned electric vehicles. Lieyu mayor Hung Cheng-fa said that he hopes more resources can be put into reducing carbon emission, an international trend.

Beijing to subsidize new-energy vehicles through 2015

Want China Times, Xinhua 2013-09-19

Visitors check out the latest models at the New Energy Auto Show
in Jinan, Shandong province, on Aug. 24. (Photo/Xinhua)

Subsidies will be provided to help promote new-energy vehicles from 2013 to 2015, China's Ministry of Finance said on Tuesday.

Manufacturers of pure electric automobiles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles will be eligible for the subsidies, a ministry notice said. Government organizations, public institutions and public transportation will be key targets for the new policy.

The subsidy standards will be rated following basic price differences between new-energy automobiles and their traditional counterparts, but will decrease each year due to scale of production and technological progress.

Central financial authorities will also reward pilot cities with subsidies in proportion to their investment in building charging equipment.

The key target regions will be mega-cities or city clusters as they are under heavy pressure to save energy and cut emissions, for example the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster, the Yangtze River Delta area and the Pearl River Delta region. Previously, subsidies just went to pilot cities.

The notice was jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission.

To be a pilot city or cluster, they must provide plans on how they will promote new-energy vehicles and apply to the four departments, the notice said.

Toyota’s Low-Cost Green Cars Agya, Ayla Start Drive on Indonesia’s Streets

Jakarta Globe, Carla Isati Octama & Tito Summa Siahaan, September 10, 2013

A Daihatsu Ayla at the 2012 Indonesia International Motor Show in
Kemayoran, Jakarta. (JG Photo/Jurnasyanto Sukarno)

A year after the initial announcement, Japanese car manufacturer Toyota Motor and Astra International, Indonesia’s largest car distributor, introduced their low-cost and environmentally friendly vehicles on Monday and estimated that there would be sales of more than 30,000 units this year.

The cars — Astra Toyota Agya and Astra Daihatsu Ayla — have qualified for the government’s low-cost green car (LCGC) policy, which excludes the luxury tax on such cheap and environmentally friendly cars by between 25 percent and 100 percent.

Agya and Ayla are developed and produced by Astra Daihatsu Motor, Daihatsu’s joint venture with Astra International in Indonesia. Daihatsu is part of the Toyota group.

Both cars were modeled at the Indonesia International Motor Show in September last year with a price tag below Rp 100 million ($8,950), attracting tens of thousands of orders from customers in Indonesia. But the government was not able to complete the LCGC technical regulations — on which the cars’ cheap price relies — until July, substantially delaying production.

Now the companies have placed high hopes on the cars to boost sales this year.

“We are confident that the Agya, a car designed specifically to meet the needs of Indonesian consumers, will be popular,” said Johnny Darmawan, Toyota Astra Motor’s president director.

“The sale price for the Agya will range from Rp 99 million to Rp 120 million, with monthly sales target in 2013 of 5,000 units,” Johnny said.

“We hope Astra Daihatsu Ayla can contribute to the growth of car market and industry in Indonesia as expected by the government when they issued the LCGC regulation,” Sudirman MR, Astra Daihatsu Motor’s president director, said.

Toto Suryana, chief operation officer at Astra International, said the company expected Ayla — which will be sold at between Rp 76 million to Rp 107 million — to reach 16,000 units sales by the end of this year.

He said production had begun last week and consumers should expect to begin receiving the cars in the next two weeks.

The Agya and Ayla join other jointly developed TMC-Daihatsu vehicles on the Indonesian market, such as the Toyota “Avanza” and the Daihatsu “Xenia”.

Data released by the Association of Indonesian Automotive Industries (Gaikindo) showed sales were up 12 percent to 601,952 units in the first half of the year. The group of 42 members has forecast car sales this year to hit 1.1 million units, matching last year’s result but suggesting a slowdown in the second half of the year.

ABB to build over 200 EV charging stations in the Netherlands' largest network

Engadget.com, Terrence O'Brien, Jul 10th, 2013

ABB to build over 200 EV charging stations in the Netherlands' network

Swiss company ABB has been chosen by Fastned to provide chargers for over 200 EV charging stations throughout the Netherlands, in what will be that nation's largest such network. The largely solar-fueled stations will be spaced out along Dutch highways at a maximum distance of 50 kilometers from each other. Fastned will be using ABB's Terra fast chargers, which are compatible with a large number of vehicles, including "all major car brands from Europe, Asia and the USA." Each charger will also be connected to the internet, allowing ABB to push software updates and provide customers with remote assistance. The first batch of chargers will land roadside in September with rollout expected to be completed in 2015. 

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"Update on Current Events" – Jul 23, 2011 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: The Humanization of God, Gaia, Shift of Human Consciousness, 2012, Benevolent Design, Financial Institutes (Recession, System to Change ...), Water Cycle (Heat up, Mini Ice Ace, Oceans, Fish, Earthquakes ..), Nuclear Power Revealed, Geothermal Power, Hydro Power, Drinking Water from Seawater, No need for Oil as Much, Middle East in Peace, Persia/Iran Uprising, Muhammad, Israel, DNA, Two Dictators to fall soon, Africa, China, (Old) Souls, Species to go, Whales to Humans, Global Unity,..... etc.)

"2013 - What Now ?" – Jan 6, 2013 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Text version)

“… New ideas are things you never thought of. These ideas will be given to you so you will have answers to the most profound questions that your societies have had since you were born. Inventions will bring clean water to every Human on the planet, cheaply and everywhere. Inventions will give you power, cheaply and everywhere. These ideas will wipe out all of the reasons you now have for pollution, and when you look back on it, you'll go, "This solution was always there. Why didn't we think of that? Why didn't we do this sooner?" Because it wasn't time and you were not ready. You hadn't planted the seeds and you were still battling the old energy, deciding whether you were going to terminate yourselves before 2012. Now you didn't…. and now you didn't.

It's funny, what you ponder about, and what your sociologists consider the "great current problems of mankind", for your new ideas will simply eliminate the very concepts of the questions just as they did in the past. Do you remember? Two hundred years ago, the predictions of sociologists said that you would run out of food, since there wasn't enough land to sustain a greater population. Then you discovered crop rotation and fertilizer. Suddenly, each plot of land could produce many times what it could before. Do you remember the predictions that you would run out of wood to heat your homes? Probably not. That was before electricity. It goes on and on.

So today's puzzles are just as quaint, as you will see. (1)How do you strengthen the power grids of your great nations so that they are not vulnerable to failure or don't require massive infrastructure improvement expenditures? Because cold is coming, and you are going to need more power. (2) What can you do about pollution? (3) What about world overpopulation? Some experts will tell you that a pandemic will be the answer; nature [Gaia] will kill off about one-third of the earth's population. The best minds of the century ponder these puzzles and tell you that you are headed for real problems. You have heard these things all your life.

Let me ask you this. (1) What if you could eliminate the power grid altogether? You can and will. (2) What if pollution-creating sources simply go away, due to new ideas and invention, and the environment starts to self-correct? (3) Overpopulation? You assume that humanity will continue to have children at an exponential rate since they are stupid and can't help themselves. This, dear ones, is a consciousness and education issue, and that is going to change. Imagine a zero growth attribute of many countries - something that will be common. Did you notice that some of your children today are actually starting to ponder if they should have any children at all? What a concept! ….”

National Electric Car Can Begin Mass Production in 2013: Dahlan

Jakarta Globe, July 16, 2012

Depok Mayor Nurmahmudi Ismail, in the driver’s seat, tests an electric
 car on Jatimulya in Depok in West Java, on Friday. The car, which was
 invented by Depok resident Dasep Ahmadi, reportedly runs 150 kilometers,
 or between four and five hours on a single charge. (Antara Photo/Indrianto
Eko Suwarso)

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State-Owned Enterprises Minister Dahlan Iskan said on Monday that the country can begin mass production of the national electric car as early as next year after doing a test drive of its prototype on Monday. 

“If the infrastructure is ready, we can start mass producing the car with a capacity of 5,000 units per year,” he claimed. 

The minister drove the prototype of the Ahmadi Mesin 5.0 electric car, which was named after its maker Dasep Ahmadi, 48 kilometers from its garage at Jati Mulya, on the outskirts of Jakarta, to the Research and Technology Ministry building on Jalan Thamrin in Central Jakarta. 

The prototype so far only has a local police road certificate since regulations on taxes and registrations for electric vehicles, which do not fall under existing categories, have yet to be put in place.

Dahlan said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has already instructed the ministers for industry, research and technology and trade to work on the necessary regulations. 

“Within the next three months, there should be a clear technical guide for commercial regulations, so that the car can be mass produced,” Dahlan said. 

Besides Ahmadi’s electric car, there are four other versions in the final stages of completion under the minibus, city car and sports car categories.

Antara

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Sudirman, Thamrin streets closed for six hours

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sun, 03/28/2010 10:04

The Jakarta government is banning auto vehicles from passing through Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin this morning to celebrate an anti-pollution campaign.

The two main streets closure began from 6 a.m., and will end at 12 p.m.

"Now we have closed these streets from motorists 35 times for an environment purpose," Rina Suryani, city government anti-pollution division head, said as quoted by kompas.com.

The anti-pollution campaign, which called Jakarta Great Clean 2010, was attended by thousands of local people.

Related Article:

Air pollution level in Jakarta drops

Come clean

Indah Setiawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 03/26/2010 5:35 PM | Jakarta

Come clean: Jakarta government employees hang two containers carrying 20 cubic meters of garbage in front of the National Monument in Central Jakarta. The display marked the launch of jakartabersih.com to promote a clean city by Governor Fauzi Bowo on Friday. - JP/Indah Setiawati

East Flood Canal to have bicycle tracks

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 01/16/2010 8:46 PM

The East Flood Canal is soon to emerge as the most popular and safest place for bikers to ride in Jakarta.

Pitoyo Subandrio, head of Ciliwung-Cisadane Flood Bureau at the Ministry of Public Works, said Saturday a bicycle track would be built along each side of the canal, which stretches between Kebon Nanas in East Jakarta and Marunda Beach in North Jakarta.

The left track between Kebon Nanas and Marunda covers 23 kilometers, while the opposite track covers 22 kilometers.

“We are planting trees along the tracks to make them convenient to bikers. I believe the canal will be the most popular route,” Pitoyo was quoted by kompas.com.

The government will build barb wire fences along the canal to keep people from dumping garbage into the flood control facility.

Review 2009: Jakarta’s problems, dealing with land and water woes in 2010

Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 12/23/2009 10:00 AM

As we gear up to welcome a new year, Governor Fauzi Bowo carries several unfinished problems from 2009 with him, both above and below Jakarta’s surface.

Fauzi’s decision last month to convert 27 gas stations into green spaces, which will serve as water catchment areas, is a welcome gesture.

It is, however, not enough as Jakarta is increasingly burdened by the weight of development and a growing population.

Experts predict that Jakarta’s population will hit 30 million by 2020, placing considerable strain on infrastructure and quality of life.

To counter some of the man-made environmental degradation, the administration is likely to keep its spatial target for green spaces at 13.9 percent.

Regardless, the central government requires that Jakarta devote at least 30 percent of its 662.33 square kilometer area for open and green spaces.

Currently less than 10 percent of Jakarta qualifies as open and green space.

Jakarta’s problems, however, also exist below the surface.

While water catchment areas are rapidly decreasing, the city administration also has problems in relation to uncontrolled groundwater extraction.

Throughout the year, the Jakarta Environmental Agency has been working hard to monitor and seal illegal groundwater wells in the city. However, the agency says it is too difficult to monitor all offenders.

Another worrying problem is water contamination from increased sewage.

Jakarta may be the only metropolis that has an almost non-existent sewage system. Less than 1 percent, or 560 hectares of the total area of Jakarta is equipped with an efficient sewage system, according to the City Water Regulatory Board, while the rest simply dump their domestic waste into rivers.

“Jakarta is literally a megalopolis standing on a pile of doo-doo,” board member Firdaus Ali was quoted as saying in September.

The regulatory body said the city would need Rp 11 trillion (US$ 1.11 billion) or roughly half of its 2009 budget to build a proper sanitation system, according to the Water Regulatory Board.

The city only has one sewage treatment plant in Setiabudi, South Jakarta, and waste treatment facilities in Pulo Gebang, East Jakarta, and Duri Kosambi, West Jakarta.

The latest move to build a sanitation system was in 2002, when the city signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) worth $5.3 billion with an Australian company to develop a proper sanitation system.

Under the agreement, the company was to construct a deep tunnel sewerage system to treat all liquid waste in the capital.

Where should we start fixing the problem?

Civil engineering graduate Eva Komandjaja from the Technical University of Denmark said that for a large city like Jakarta, which has never had a proper drainage system, a good starting point might be building a combined sewer overflow (CSO).

In drainage terms, a CSO means both rainwater and household sewage water run through the same pipe, hence the “combined” part.

Eva said the advantage of this system was that it was relatively cheap to construct. This system however, spells trouble for a city that has a large annual rainfall such as Jakarta. The large amount of rainwater could overflow the system and would literally flood the streets.

“A separated system, on the other hand, is probably the best solution in long-term,” she said.

“However, it’s expensive and it takes a lot of work to build as two different pipes must be laid on top of each other — one for rainwater, which does not require further treatment and can be piped directly to open water bodies and the other for sewage water leading to wastewater treatment plant.” she said.

Eva said the important choice was in the hands of the city administration.

Green belts in RI cities shrinking fast : official

Antara News, Monday, December 21, 2009 23:03 WIB

Solo, Central Java (ANTARA News) - The area of green belts in Indonesian cities has decreased by 30 percent during the past 30 years, an environment ministry official said.

Green open public spaces in urban centers could eventually vanish or change in function if the current situation was not handled properly, Bambang Widianto, deputy for urban people`s empowerment to the envionment minister, said here Monday.

Citing examples, he said green belts in two major cities such as Jakarta and Bandung now were only 0.55 square meters and 0.45 square meters wide respectively.

"These numbers are vastly different from the green belts in major European cities which range from 7 to 11,5 square meters," Bambang said at a seminar about the environment at Solo city`s Sebelas Maret University.

Ideally, he said, the width of green belts account for 30 percent of an urban area . However, it was very hard to achieve the ideal green belt width, especially in big cities in Indonesia such as Jakarta.

One of the possible ways to preserve the environment in big cities, he said, was making biopore holes and restore the initial function of public open spaces as green areas.

No emission stickers, no parking in our lots

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Mon, 11/30/2009 11:39 AM

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo said Sunday the city administration would only allow cars that have passed emission tests to use the city offices’ parking areas.

“We are moving forward on air quality improvement. Beginning Monday, two parking areas in the city hall will only allow cars that have emission test stickers to park inside,” Fauzi said during Car Free Day at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta.

This new arrangement will also be applied to sections of the parking area at the National Monument (Monas) park in Central Jakarta.

“This policy will also be applied in other city offices. This is our way of raising public awareness about the importance of emission testing,” he said.

Ridwan Panjaitan, head of the law enforcement unit at the Jakarta Environment Management Agency (BPLHD), said there were already five places that only provided parking areas for cars with emission stickers.

Cars without the stickers are not allowed to park inside PT Martina Berto and PT Dankos buildings in East Jakarta, Dharmais Hospital in West Jakarta, Sahid Jaya Hotel in Central Jakarta, and the BPLHD office in South Jakarta.

Ridwan said some sections of parking areas in Ciputra Mall and Trisakti University in West Jakarta, Senayan City in Central Jakarta, Indonesian Christian University in East Jakarta, Pondok Indah Mall in South Jakarta, Kelapa Gading Mall in North Jakarta, the five municipalities offices, and several other company buildings had also applied the policy.

“The companies, universities, and city administration that want to take this step are members of the Clean Emission Appreciation Movement. We are a group that aims to improve air quality,” he said.

“The movement has about 50 institutional members and I hope all of them will soon implement this policy,” Ridwan said.

Fauzi Bowo also officiated the city’s first air quality monitoring station on the same day.

The city spent Rp 5.5 billion to build the 6-square-meter station, which is equipped with various electronic tools that can measure air pollution in the area.

The station’s machines are directly connected to the BPLHD’s data center.

“This station helps us measure the city’s condition. By measuring the level of air pollution, we can really know how bad pollution is,” Fauzi said.

Though Fauzi said that his administration has been doing its best to improve the city’s air quality, he had not decided when the administration would begin the long planned mandatory testing.

“Someday, we will surely make the emission test mandatory, but everything must be prepared first,” said Fauzi.

Harry, a car user, said that he agreed with environmental policies such as mandatory emission tests.

“As long as these efforts are done continuously, I support them. The city administration just have to show they are serious,” he said. (mrs)

Compulsary for Jakarta Drivers to Have Emission Stickers

KOMPAS/WISNU WIDIANTORO, MONDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 2009 | 1:14 PM

An emission test for buses, Monas, Central Jakarta(22/10/09).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Jakarta regional government, Monday, initiates the emission sticker zones for four-wheeled vehicles. The policy is one of the government's many attempts to improve the air quality.

The head of the Jakarta Environment Management Board (BPLHD), Peni Susanti said that, if the policy is set, then four-wheeled vehicles must pass the emission test and get the emission stickers to go through certain areas.

"One of the emission sticker areas is in Monas' IRTI (Indonesia Inter-recreation and tourism) parking space. The policy applies from Monday," Peni Susanti stated, Sunday, during the car free day on Thamrin and Sudirman streets.

Peni explained that to have clean and healthy air, the Jakarta government is currently preparing 25 areas to be emission sticker zones. Five of which are already enforced, such as around Dharmais Hospital, Sahid Hotel, PT Marina Berto, PT Dankos, and the office of Jakarta BPLHD.

As for the rest, they will be applied by stages on the next month. The other areas are around Ciputra Mall, Senayan City Mall, Jakarta City Hall, North Jakarta Mayor's Office, West Jakarta Mayor's Office, South Jakarta Mayor's Office, East Jakarta Mayor's Office, and Central Jakarta Mayor's Office, Trisakti University, UKI Hospital, Pondok Indah Mall I, Pondok Indah Mall II, Kelapa Gading Mall, PT Jiep, PT CMNP, PT Tri Dharma Wiesa, and PT Inti Ganda Persada.

"For four-wheeled vehicles without this sticker they are prohibited to pass through thouse areas," said Peni.

The Jakarta government has also provided emission testing devices for each of those zones. That way the cars can be tested on the spot. If the car is eligible then it can park in the emission sticker zone. If not, then it has to leave.

So far, the emission sticker applies only for four-wheeled vehicles. For for motor-bikes, the policy is coming in 2010. But the government will try to socialize this new policy first.

After the establishment of several policies the air quality in Jakarta has significantly improved. (SOE/C17-9)

Editor: jimbon

Source : Berita Jakarta

City officiates first air quality monitoring station

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sun, 11/29/2009 1:38 PM

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo officiated the first air quality monitoring station on Jl. Thamrin, Central Jakarta on Sunday.

“This is part of our way to raise the air quality. We will continue to keep on reducing the air pollution in the city,” said Fauzi.

The city spent Rp 5.5 billion (US$ 578,000) to buy the six-meter-square station. The station is equipped with various electronic tools which can measure the air pollution in the area.

“This tool helps us know the city's condition. By measuring the air pollution, we can be more encouraged to solve the problem,” he said.

Fauzi added that his administration was still trying to make preparation for mandatory emission tests.

“Everything must be prepared first," said Fauzi about the mandatory test which had been postponed several times. (mrs)

Malioboro to be Vehicle-Free on Weekends

Tempo Interactive, 26 November, 2009 | 15:15 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Yogyakarta: The Malioboro area will soon be transformed into a green area on weekends as the area will be vehicle-free on those days. “This will be implemented as soon as possible. If the mayor can issue the decree tomorrow, we will be able to draft the necessary regulation,” said Yogyakarta Traffic Police director, Comm. M. Ikhsan, when asked about the implementation date.

In order to realize green Malioboro, Ikhsan said he had coordinated with the Yogyakarta Transportation Office. Feasibility studies on the closing of this area have also been carried out. “Certainly we will arrange the system for the parking, street vendors, horse-drawn carts, rickshaws, and pedestrians,” he said.

BERNADA RURIT

Indonesian Ministers Find Bali’s Airport in Sad Shape

The Jakarta Globe, Made Arya

Denpasar. Long visa lines, broken computers, filthy bathrooms and leaky roofs. Such was the situation at Bali’s international airport on Sunday during a snap inspection by two cabinet ministers.

The woeful state of Ngurah Rai International Airport is threatening to become a national embarrassment and a liability for the nation’s top tourism destination. And some tourists gave an earful to Tourism Minister Jero Wacik and Patrialis Akbar, the minister of law and human rights, during their surprise visit.

“I heard some [immigration] officers say to the minister that it only takes 45 seconds to issue a visa on arrival. But I queued for 15 minutes just now,” said one Australian tourist named Lizza.

It was easy to see why. Six of the 25 visa on arrival counters at the international arrivals hall were closed because their computers were broken, officials said.

Patrialis and Wacik witnessed first-hand the long queues. “We want all the counters to be well-functioning and manned by officers. Tourists should be in their [taxi] cabs within 15 minutes if we have good service,” they said.

One Indonesian tourist told the ministers the domestic terminal had its own problems, including leaky roofs as the air-conditioners dripped water, dirty entrance and walls in the toilets, and many broken luggage trolleys.

Just two years ago, Ngurah Rai was named the country’s best airport by the Ministry of Transportation. But last week, the airport’s operator said it could no longer handle the huge volume of travelers, 45 percent of who are domestic travelers. It processes more than nine million passengers a year.

Patrialis said the surprise inspection was part of his ministry’s 100-day program to improve airport immigration services. There were many complaints about Ngurah Rai, he said. “Do not let the tourists down. We must give our best service,” Patrialis said.

Wacik also suggested limiting the shops at Ngurah Rai, because it is not a transit airport. “Ngurah Rai is not like Changi in Singapore. If the tourists want to shop, let them shop in Sukawati [handicraft] market instead,” he said.

Indonesia's Dirty Toilets Are Turning Off Tourists, Says Transport Minister

The Jakarta Globe, Anita Rachman

Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said on Tuesday that pushing for clean toilets at the nation’s ports was going to be one of his priorities for his first 100 days in administration.

He said that he has been conducting inspections at some ports and found that people are still dumping trash irresponsibly and that they weren’t keeping their toilets clean.

“I went to the Ambon port, it was filled with trash,” Freddy told journalists at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport after inspecting hajj pilgrimage flights.

He said that Indonesians should be aware that keeping the environment clean is very important, especially for attracting tourists.

“People, they have money, then they come to Indonesia and see that its toilets are very dirty, so why should they stay? They have money, they can choose somewhere else with cleaner toilets [to visit],” he said.

He said that he will ask all departments under his control to pay more attention to hygiene issues.

“We should change our culture,” he said. “This program is not only for my 100 first days in administration, but forever.”

Freddy said that people should be more disciplined. He said that Indonesia should be able to develop so it is better than other countries.

“This is not a poor country,” he said.

He added that the ministry would conduct raids on the street vendors around the airport. Freddy said that it was acceptable for people to sell things inside the airport, however, they should understand that they need to have authorization.

Related Article:

Editorial: It's not just the messy toilets!

Green areas instead of gas stations on city's plan

Triwik Kurniasari, THE JAKARTA POST, JAKARTA | Thu, 03/19/2009 3:00 PM

The city plans to revive a program aimed at rejuvenating green areas in the capital, by closing down 25 gas stations and converting them into public parks.

Head of parks and cemeteries agency, Ery Basworo, said Wednesday the administration had allocated a budget of Rp 75 million to close down each gas station.

"It will be expensive to demolish the gas stations. We don't have much of a budget for that this year," Ery said at City Hall.

"So the first step will be to close every gas station along the city's green areas.

"We will do this in September. We will inform every gas station owner before we do that," he said, adding that the agency proposed to carry out the project in 2008, but the City Council had rejected it.

He said the administration owned the land the gas stations were built on and had rented it out to businesses.

"The gas station owners will not get any compensation because they do not own the land," he said.

"An exception will be made if the gas station owner has proof that they own the land," said Ery.

He added the agency had teamed up with the city's legal bureau to prepare for any possible lawsuits from gas station owners.

According to the agency, the gas stations occupied about 5 hectares of the city's green areas.

Some of the gas stations are in Central Jakarta, on Jl. Gereja Theresia, Jl. Diponegoro, Jl. Hayam Wuruk and Jl. Kwitang Raya, while others are in South Jakarta, on Jl. Suryo/Senopati, Jl. Lapangan Roos and Jl. Melawai Raya.

Green areas in the capital have shrunk with the burgeoning of skyscrapers, shopping centers, apartments, hotels and office buildings, which started in the early 1970s.

Deputy Governor Prijanto said green areas in the capital currently accounted for 9.9 percent of the city's area.

The administration's objective is to increase the city's green areas to 13.94 percent of the total area of Jakarta (63,744 hectares) by 2010, which is far below the 30 percent set by the central government.

Wati Amir, a legislator at the House of Representatives' Commission VII for energy affairs, urged the administration not be afraid to close down gas stations set up illegally.

"The administration should not be afraid of shutting down a gas station just because it is owned by a state official," said Wati.

"Gas stations shouldn't be built along one of the city's green zones like Pakubuwono."

"Today, children in the area have nowhere to play outside because there are very few parks there. So it's time for the administration to shut down those gas stations and convert them back into parks," said the member of the Golkar Party.

Many business people with political connections and state officials own gas stations around town.

One of the gas stations located on Jl. Jend. Sudirman, near the Semanggi bridge in Central Jakarta, belongs to Taufik Kiemas, former president Megawati's husband.

Wati said the administration should immediately implement its plan because green areas played a very important role in making the city more livable.

Green Map introduces new way to tour Jakarta

Triwik Kurniasari, THE JAKARTA POST, JAKARTA | Mon, 03/16/2009 4:26 PM  

Jakartans can now enjoy the excitement of finding interesting , lesser known locations, including green spaces and historical sites, by using environmentally friendly modes of transportation, by following the recently launched 2009 Jakarta Green Map. 

The green map includes 100 places of interest and neighborhoods with green activities located along bus and train routes and bicycle lanes. 

Nirwono Joga, who coordinated the making of Green Map Jakarta, said that the map was designed to promote a healthy and sustainable city and features, among other things, green areas, old buildings, rare trees and bird-watching sites. 

"We want to encourage people to get to know more about Jakarta, including its green areas," Nirwono Yoga said on Sunday. 

"We also encourage them to travel in more environmentally friendly ways, by taking nonmotorized transportation, like walking and riding a bike, or by using public transportation, like the TransJakarta bus or trains," he said. 

The 2009 Jakarta Green Map is the fifth edition. The first map, of Kemang, South Jakarta, was made in 2001 by a group of residents, architects and media workers. The second, of Kebayoran Baru, also in South Jakarta, was made in 2002. A year later, Menteng in Central Jakarta, had its turn, while the fourth green map, of Old Town in West and North Jakarta, was made in 2005. 

The launch of the green map was marked by a tour of Senayan, in South and Central Jakarta and the Museum Taman Prasasti (Inscription Museum) in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta. 

During the tour, participants had a chance to visit Krida Loka Park and see its big, old and rare trees, which include mahogany, lobi-lobi, tamarind, bay leaf and matoa (Papuan fruits) species. 

Besides rare trees, people also viewed birds including parrots and kepodangs, Evi Fadliah, from the Green Monster NGO said. 

"Birds in the city often go to this area to get a rest and find food, like seeds and fruits. Many Jakartans don't know about this and it is a good opportunity for us to disperse this information," Evi said.

Padang allocates Rp1.07 billion for city cleanliness

Padang, W Sumatra (ANTARA News) - Padang municipal administration has allocated some 1.07 billion rupiah to carry out the city cleanliness and park intensification program, its mayor said. 

The cleanliness and the park intensification program funds had been allocated in the city`s 2009 budget and the program will be implemented by the city cleanliness and parks handling office, Padang mayor Fauzi Bahar said when explaining his note of the city 2009 budget here on Saturday. 

The budget will be used to finance eight activities relating to efforts to stepping up the city cleanliness and parks facility procurement, he said. 

The eight activities would include an increasing number of personnel for the cleanliness and park controlling program and providing several rest rooms in the city parks, the mayor added. 

Padang with some 800 thousand population once gained an Adipura, award given to cities for cleanliness. 

In addition, the city administration has also allocated some 590 million rupiah to developing the transportation facilities, among other things the "Samudra Bungus" seaport.