The city of Serpong, near Jakarta, for instance, cracked down on informal businesses that recycled car batteries, resulting in lead levels in the air above safety limits, she said. In a city in East Java, the local government closed the small-scale metal smelter industry based on air pollution data and the level of lead found in the bloodstream of elementary school children.
While it is possible to measure the amount of fine particulate matter in the air using conventional techniques, only nuclear analysis can provide data on the composition of particulate matter, which allows authorities to identify the source of the pollution and device strategies to combat the problem, Santoso said. She now produces a report for each of the 17 cities on an annual basis, detailing the levels of lead, iron, potassium, sulphur, silicon and other particulates in their air.
“Having data is the first step towards taking action, and nuclear science can provide this data,” said Jupiter Sitorous Pane, who heads BATAN’s Center for Applied Nuclear Science and Technology in Bandung. There is a lot more demand for the service from cities around Indonesia, including West Java, the country’s most populous province and economic powerhouse, of which Bandung is the capital. The data will also serve as baseline to measure pollution emitted by coal-fired power plants the government is planning to construct around Java.
The IAEA has supported BATAN’s research through its technical cooperation programme, by providing equipment and access to international experts with experience in using the nuclear technique for air pollution measurement. This support enabled BATAN to apply the techniques on a national scale through sampling in most of the country’s major cities. The results of the data produced with the help of nuclear analytical techniques can form the basis for informed government regulation and policymaking.
