Government presented three experts in the judicial review on Environmental Management Act which being pleaded by fictive bioremediation suspect, Bachtiar Abdul Fatah. Philippus M. Hadjon, Alexander Sony Keraf, and Enri Damanhuri attended to deliver their expertise in the trial held on Tuesday (9/9) at MK Plenary Room. The trio anonymously nodded that MK must repel all of Plaintiff’s demand.  

Expert of State Administration, Philipus M. Hadjon said that there are at least four functions conveyed in the permission law. They are, namely, protection of any object, avoiding hazard, rare objects distribution, and activity limitation.

In B3 management permission is unavoidable. Waste carries dangerous components, and the law shading it, is purposely preventive. “That is not irrational to contradistinguish Article 59 verse (1) with Article 102 Environment Management Act,” Hadjon said.

Permission is a must

Enri Damanhuri, Environment expert from ITB said that B3 Waste must be threatened specially. This due to the unnecessary –yet polluting- chemical hazard contained in the waste, which is not degradable, naturally.  Some cases in parts of the world show that dire effect from this kind of pollution takes time before the severe disease emerged and infected people around.

“It changes the way we think about another kind of long-term affecting waste. In 1976, US changed their regulation about waste management drastically and new concept of hazardous waste management emerged, entitled Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). This new concept is adopted to our waste regulation as contained in Government Decree 19/1994. The thing is, this kind waste requires special management,” Damanhuri said.     

The concept has been applied since 1994 to monitor any tie of waste management. In Indonesia, it requires permissions, namely, storage permission, compiling permission, transportation permission, utilizing permission, management, and hoarding permission.

“I cannot imagine if any of the requirements being removed. Our flaw management would step backwards before it was applied in 1994,” Damanhuri added.

Alexander Sonny Keraf, former environment minister said that the spirit conveyed in the Article regards human obligation in fostering the nature. It is also a protection for any dire long-term effect for the people of Indonesia. “It was constitutional action committed by the government. By formulating such Act, human rights will run smoothly due to the minimum pollution effect. Constitutional Justice must reject the application in the name of the people,” Keraf retained. (Yusti Nurul Agustin/mh)