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The main objective of the PDAMs' water
sales prices adjustment is to guarantee business management
in accordance with healthy business principles. This
effort must certainly be linked to improvements in other
areas such as business efficiency improvement, labor
productivity increases and, last but not least, a maximum
possible reduction in unaccounted-for-water (UfW).
Problems related to tariffs have grown
into a general problem for PDAMs because many water
companies have from the outset acted as providers of
a social service, delivering water at prices far below
production costs. Because of this, tariff increases
are difficult to explain to the public without protests
via local parliaments and community organizations. This
makes it more difficult for PDAMs to achieve a situation
in which they operate according to healthy business principles.
Looking at reports that have up
to now been received by PERPAMSI, the larger PDAMs have
in general adjusted their tariffs to achieve full cost
recovery. To achieve the desired tariff levels, it is
necessary to start with an transparent awareness campaign
to explain the objective of tariff increases, which
should be accompanied with improvements in service levels
(widening of distribution networks, additional connections,
improved water quality), and a reduction in unaccounted-for-water.
If these matters are being fully addressed by PDAMs,
tariff adjustments can be implemented and accepted by
the public without meaningful protest.
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ISO 9002 Certificate from the Chairman
of Dutch Quality Registration Agency was handed over
on 1 May 2001.
ISO 9002 - Deli Tua Water Processing.
In order to meet the demand of quality, quantity and
continuity of measured and tested water supply, PDAM
Tirtanadi applied for ISO 9002 quality standard for
one of the installations they own i.e. Deli Tua water
processing installation. Besides improving the quality,
another purpose for the application of certification
is to improve efficiency in all fields including manpower,
use of chemicals, power and the operations of available
equipment. With the application of ISO 9002, it is hoped
that productivity of Deli Tua processing installation
will increase.
Next to improving the quality of waste
water, PDAM Tirtanadi also plans to develop a sludge
treatment facility of the 'sun drying bed' type, in
order to return an end product to river with 'zero waste
quality'.
Even in the most remote
area...
Kronjo is one of the sub-district areas
of Tangerang Regency. It is located about 30 kilometers
from the center of Tangerang towards the north of West
Java coast; the area is accessible only after driving
in a car for about two hours. It is a long drive because
there are holes in the read so that a car has to travel
slowly, zigzagging to avoid large holes whose asphalt
is completely ruined.
According to Krojo Head of Sub-district,
Mulyono, the people in his administrative area numbering
about 77,700 people are distributed in five villages
who have suffered lack of clean water all this time,
potable water in particular. Well-to do people, and
according to one of the inhabitants, Jatam, they total
only 10 percent, build rainwater reservoirs for water
supply during the dry season. The rest of them depend
on irrigation water which is channeled from Cisadane
River, and lately has been experiencing heavy pollution.
Here and there, the people collectively construct 20
x 20 meters dikes, and some of the irrigation water
is then channeled there just for filtering purposes,
then used by taking it in containers home.
They have to do this because the groundwater
which is located about 4 kilometers from the coast is
insipid and even salty, it cannot be used for bathing,
washing let alone drinking.
Fortunately, the people who are generally
farmers or bandeng fish farmers since January 2002 got
the luck of getting rained in a desert with the presence
of PDAM Tirta Kerta Raharja of Tangerang Regency. Even
though the presence is not like that of PDAM in urban
areas where people's homes are accessed by pipes.
Tangerang Regency
PDAM is present in Kronjo Sub-district, to be exact
in Muncung Village next to the office of the Village
Chief, with an installation of saline water processing
to become ready to drink potable water in containers
with trade brand TEKAER. This brand originates from
the name PDAM Tirta Kerta Raharja. The wonderful thing
is, although the packaged drinking water dares to compete
in quality with various other packaged water already
known for a long time by the people in urban
areas such as Aqua, Ades, Aquaria, VIT etc., the price
is extraordinarily chea; Rp.2,500.- per gallon @ 20
liters. So it is only Rp.125.- per liter. Compare this
to Aqua in agents which has reached Rp. 6.500 per gallon
@ 20 liters. Compare also to a glass of tea without
sugar in restaurants which may reach Rp. 1,000.-
It is true that the production of the
water processing installation with the Reverse Osmosis
system has just reached 20 meters if run for 24 hours;
it is not yet enough to meet the need of the people
in the sub-district totaling 77,700 people. However,
as breakthrough that has been hoped for tens of years,
the development of brackish water processing into ready
to drink water has clearly been able to open a new chapter
in the matter of potable water in the area and this
may become a model for the development of similar installations
in other coastal areas not yet accessed by PDAM pipes.
The President Director of PDAM Tirta
Kerta Raharja, Drs. Dadan Hendra Sambas said that there
was indeed a kind of injustice felt by the people on
Tangerang north coast in the matter of clean water supply.
Some people in urban areas are able to enjoy PDAM's
clean water product, while those living on the north
coastal area are not. It is not that PDAM's pipes cannot
access them, but for this purpose there is need for
very expensive investment so that this is not feasible
at the moment. So, it was necessary to seek alternatives,
so that there would not be an impression that Tangerang
PDAM did not care about the people on the north coast.
And the alternative technology is Reverse Osmosi.
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