EAST JAVA: LAPINDO MUD UPDATE: HYDROGEN SULPHIDE LEVELS AND

UNCLAS SURABAYA 000037 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MTS AND EB/ESC/IEC DEPT FOR DS/IP/EAP DOE FOR CUTLER/PI-32 AND NAKANO/PI-42 COMMERCE FOR USDOC 4430 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EINV EPET ELAB ENRG PGOV ASEC ID SUBJECT: EAST JAVA: LAPINDO MUD UPDATE: HYDROGEN SULPHIDE LEVELS AND RIVER BOTH RISE, RESIDENT THREATENS DYKE REF: A. A) JAKARTA 2375 ¶B. B) SURABAYA 26 (and previous) THIS MESSAGE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) Sofian Hadi, Director of Operations for the Sidoarjo Mud Management Agency (BPLS),told Consulate Surabaya September 18 that hydrogen sulfide gas levels at the mud flow site in Sidoarjo had increased to 30 -- 35 ppm (parts per million), levels considered dangerous to human health. It has since fallen to 21 ppm. Soffian explained that "healthy" levels are below 20 ppm. BPLS spokesman Ahmad Zulkarnaen told the press that BPLS had been forced to evacuate workers when the gas levels spiked last week. A four-member medical team operating out of an ambulance at the site told visiting Foreign Area Officer in late August that they were seeing an average of 10 patients per day, mostly for respiratory complaints caused by mud flow gases. Sofian told us that he was called to Jakarta this week for talks with the Ministry of Public Works and Parliament about current conditions at the disaster site. Porong River Level Rising as Sedimentation Increases -------------- -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Sofian said mud sedimentation in the nearby Porong River is now a critical concern. According to Sofian, BPLS's strategy of pushing mud into the Porong river has deposited 2.5 meters of solid sedimentation on to the river bottom, causing the water level to rise upriver and slowing the river's flow rate to only 3 cubic meters per second as compared to 1,000 -- 1,500 cubic meters per second during the rainy season. Rainy season demands on the river's banks at current sedimentation levels have yet to be tested and experts are predicting the water levels will exceed the height of existing river banks flooding villages and agricultural land. To forestall flooding, BPLS plans to install an additional dredger to clear this mud and push the mud east toward the sea. Sofian said the dredgers will be operational within the next two weeks. BPLS does not yet have any idea about the potential effectiveness of this plan and when results might be seen. One skeptic, Nurul Ahdi, Secretary General of the Sidoarjo environment council, was SIPDIS quoted by Suara Surabaya Radio as saying that the dredgers will not be able to handle mud sedimentation in Porong River. Local Village Leader Holds Dyke Hostage -------------- ¶3. Local news reported today that head of the partially submerged village of Kedungbendo threatened to destroy a nearby dam if compensation payments were not released to him as promised. Many residents who qualify for compensation have seen delays in disbursement due red tape. MCCLELLAND