Indonesia watchdog sues over 'mud volcano'

SHAKE AND BLOW

A warning sign stands next to a dyke which holds the mud erupting from a Lapindo Brantas gas exploration well in Sidoarjo, East Java. Tonnes of potentially toxic hot mud began spewing from the earth at a gas drilling site on the May 29th, 2006. Photo courtesy AFP.

by Staff Writers
Jakarta (AFP) Feb 12, 2007
An Indonesian environmental watchdog said it had filed suit on Monday against a mining company and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono over a "mud volcano" which has forced thousands to flee their homes. A gas well near Surabaya in East Java operated by PT Lapindo Brantas has spewed steaming mud since May last year, submerging villages, factories and fields in the Sidoarjo district.

"We are taking them to court because the mud outflow caused by Lapindo has thoroughly damaged the environment in Sidoarjo," said Chalid Muhammad, the chairman of Walhi, the country's leading environment watchdog.

Lapindo and five related companies, President Yudhoyono, the energy and environment ministers and local officials were named as defendants, he said. The officials were named for failing to quickly contain the mud spill.

Yudhoyono has ordered Lapindo to pay 3.8 trillion rupiah (420 million dollars) in compensation and costs.

An Indonesian minister, Aburizal Bakrie, claimed last month that the flow was a "natural disaster" unrelated to the drilling activities of Lapindo, which belongs to a group controlled by his family.

However, a study by British experts said that the eruption was most likely caused by drilling for gas.

In addition, 13 people died after an explosion in November when an underground gas pipeline burst following subsidence that was blamed on the mud leak.

Source: Agence France-Presse

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS
Solar Energy Solutions
Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ...

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

SHAKE AND BLOW

More Tremors Shake Comoros After Volcano Eruption

Moroni, Indian Ocean (AFP) Jan 15, 2007
About a dozen new tremors shook the Comoros after the weekend eruption of the Mount Karthala volcano but the threat to residents appeared to be receding, emergency services said Monday. The latest tremors were felt in different areas of Grande Comore, the main island in the Indian Ocean archipelago where the volcano is located, but of lower magnitude than those Saturday and Sunday, they said.

INTERNET SPACE New Damage And Bad Weather Delay Asian Internet Repairs Asia Turns To Time-Tested Solution For Damaged Internet Cables Chinese Web Could Remain Slow Until Late January 10000 Chinese Domain Names Vanish Amid Web Chaos	LAUNCH PAD Research Rocket Launches From Poker Flat Through Pulsating Aurora Six Aurora-Research Rockets To Launch From Poker Flat Sea Launch Zenit Explodes On Pad Sea Launch Operations To Be Resumed Despite Liftoff Failure
AEROSPACE Anger As Britons Face Air Tax Hike Bats In Flight Reveal Unexpected Aerodynamics Lockheed Martin And Boeing Form Strategic Alliance To Promote Next-Gen Air Transportation System Time to test the Guardian Missile Defense System For Commercial Aircraft	MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS Interim Polar System Reaches Full Operational Capability Raytheon Demonstrates Satellite Communications Alternative Northrop Grumman Delivers Payload For First Advanced EHF Military Communications Satellite Defense Support Program Flight 23 Sees Integration Of Satellite And Launch Vehicle Payload Adapter
TECH SPACE In Tiny Supercooled Clouds Physicists Exchange Light And Matter Liquid Crystals Stabilised Ultra-Dense Optical Storage On One Photon Nanocomposite Research Yields Strong And Stretchy Fibers	APPOINTMENTS Alan Stern Appointed To Lead Science Mission Directorate Former Space Agency Chief May Head RSC Energia Northrop Grumman Names Teri Marconi VP Of Combat Avionics For Electronic Systems Northrop Grumman Appoints Joseph Ensor Vice President Of Surveillance And Remote Sensing
EARTH OBSERVATION Gascom To Launch 4 Smotr Low-Orbit Remote Sensing Satellites GeoEye Makes Final Debt Payment For The Purchase Of Space Imaging Google Earth To Blur Key India Sites Brazilian Satellite Undergoes Environmental Tests	GPS NEWS GPS Upgrade Will Require Complicated Choreography China Puts New Navigation Satellite Into Orbit GMV Signs Galileo Contracts Worth Over 40 Million Euros Port Of Rotterdam To Use SAVI Networks Savitrak For Cargo Security And Management Service

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright Space.TV Corporation. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space.TV Corp on any Web page published or hosted by Space.TV Corp. Privacy Statement