Projects

An objective of this project is to build capacity at the local and central government levels through the collaborative development of key remediation procedures and guidelines, including: feasibility study, engineering designs, action plan, best practices/recommendations, and draft procurement and construction tenders.

Background

For more than a century, metalworking fed families in the village of Pesarean in the Tegal Regency on the island of Central Java, even as the smelters and factories contaminated homes, school yards, public streets and a cemetery with lead and other heavy metals.  In the late 1970s, as plastics began to replace some of the metal products made in Pesarean, metalworkers began recycling used lead-acid batteries and smelting the recovered lead for resale, often working in their homes or yards, unaware of the danger to themselves and their families. 

With no designated disposal sites, recyclers dumped slag from lead smelting in a mound in the middle of the village, creating an enormous toxic site of lead-infused charcoal ash and metal waste. Children played in the slag piles and walked through them to school; residents tracked lead dust into their homes and shops while breezes wafting through the village carried lead particles out from the village center. 

In 2010, the Government of Tegal Regency created an industrial zone one kilometer outside of Pesarean for smelting activity.  The remaining informal smelters moved to the zone where they have set up a co-op and work in open sheds outside a formal lead smelting factory. 

However, the massive slag heap in the center of the village remains a source of intense lead pollution. Lead levels in soil samples tested by Pure Earth have measured at more than 54,000 ppm in some areas. Blood lead levels, too, have been consistently elevated, even dangerously so.  

Blood lead level studies

A 2011 Mer-C study found that 88 percent of 400 adults tested had blood lead levels about 10 µg/dL and 16 percent had blood lead levels at or greater than 45 µg/dL, the level at which the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommends urgent medical intervention with chelation therapy. A 2013 study of women of child-bearing age found an average blood lead level among the women of 28 µg/dL with the maximum BLL at 45.8 µg/dL. 

In 2015, with support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Pure Earth began a project to identify lead-contaminated sites in and around Pesarean, and to assess the risk to the community.  After conducting focus groups with former smelter owners, workers and their female partners, Pure Earth conducted blood lead level sampling of residents who lived near former smelters.  Of the 46 people tested, 41 percent had blood lead levels at or greater than 45 µg/dL.  Although no blood samples were taken from children, Pure Earth investigators heard repeatedly from parents and school administrators that children were struggling with their schoolwork. Several reported overt physical deformities and mental handicaps, as well as developmental delays. 

2016 Intervention

With support from the Danish aid agency (DANIDA), in 2016, Pure Earth carried out the following scope of work.

1: Feasibility Study

• Historical Review: Examine past smelting activities and prior interventions.

• Technical Analysis: Assess site contamination, legal context, and develop a Conceptual Site Model (CSM).

• Environmental Review: Analyze current environmental risks and propose mitigation strategies.

• Social Review: Assess social impacts, ongoing smelting in residential areas, and community needs.

2: Preliminary Engineering Design

• Matrix Analysis: Compare remediation options (e.g., encapsulation, off-site disposal).

• Scenario Development: Design two feasible remediation alternatives.

• Stakeholder Consultation: Gather feedback from local, provincial, and national authorities.

• Engineering Design: Develop technical plans, drawings, and specifications for the preferred remediation scenario.

3: Best Practice Guidelines

• Develop encapsulation guidelines based on local and international experience, especially the Cinangka site.

4: Project Action Plan (PAP)

• Draft a step-by-step implementation plan including timeline, budget, milestones, TORs, and logistical considerations.

5: Draft Tender Documents

• Prepare draft procurement and construction documents, including Bills of Quantities and TORs for key roles.

2018 Update – Government begins remediation effort

In an effort to mitigate the risks from lead contamination, the Government of Indonesia, at both national and sub-national level, has taken action to respond to the crisis.  In 2018, the first phase of a clean up of a village school yard with high concentrations of lead in the soil was completed. Government officials are currently working on the the next phase of the remediation plan. 

From the Pollution Blog: Breaking the Cycle of Extreme Lead Poisoning in Pesarean, Indonesia

 2023 Update – Government removes lead waste dump

For decades, Pesarean Village in Tegal Regency, Central Java Province, Indonesia, has been contaminated with lead. More than 18,000 tons of Used Lead Acid Batteries (ULAB) and metal smelting waste were dumped in the middle of residential areas. Currently, Pesarean is undergoing a transformation to be free from lead contamination.

Efforts to remediate lead-contaminated land in Tegal Regency, particularly in Pesarean Village, Adiwerna District, have steadily progressed. Since the first remediation initiative by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) in 2018, the entire 9,439 m² lead-contaminated dumpsite in Pesarean has been restored by 2023. The remediation process cost approximately IDR 20.5 billion, funded by Indonesia’s State Budget (APBN) through KLHK.

Based on the Tegal Regent Regulation Number 71 of 2023 regarding the Action Plan for Reducing Lead Poisoning in Children in Tegal Regency 2023–2027, the Government of Tegal Regency is committed to completing the remediation of contaminated areas outside the dumpsite, including streets, alleys, and residential yards, totaling 5,000 m². This effort began in 2024 with a commitment of IDR 600 million from the Regional Budget (APBD).

This land remediation progress provides a breath of fresh air for an area plagued by severe lead pollution for over four decades. “None of this would have been possible without collaboration and commitment from various stakeholders,” said Muchtar Mawardi, SKM, M.Kes., Head of the Environmental Agency (DLH) of Tegal Regency and one of the driving forces behind this achievement.

Read more about the on the Pollution Blog –

Muchtar Mawardi and His Legacy for a Lead-Free Tegal Regency

Yayasan Pure Earth Indonesia is continuing to support the government by developing a remediation plan for side streets throughout the village.

See the transformation of the village.