A 50-meter (164-foot) mountain of waste at Indonesia’s Bantargebang landfill, the country’s largest, recently collapsed following days of extreme rainfall that destabilized the massive, saturated pile. The tragedy resulted in seven confirmed deaths. The head of Jakarta’s search and rescue office, Desiana Kartika Bahari, said the victims included two garbage truck drivers, three scavengers and two food stall sellers who had been working or resting near the landfill at the time of the collapse. Six people managed to escape the disaster. As of March 10, Bahari confirmed that no additional missing people had been reported by families. Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq characterized the tragedy as the “tip of the iceberg” of Jakarta’s failed waste management. After inspecting the site, he emphasized that the disaster was a serious warning to the provincial government to immediately end open dumping, the practice of illegally piling waste without proper containment. “This incident should not have happened if waste management had been carried out in accordance with regulations,” Nurofiq told Antara, a state news agency in Indonesia. According to the ministry, the site currently holds 80 million tons of waste, which far exceeds its safe capacity. Nurofiq noted that a 2009 law states that negligence resulting in death carries a prison sentence of 5-10 years and fines of up to 10 billion rupiah (US$590,000). The ministry has since initiated a formal investigation into alleged negligence from the site management. Local residents also voiced their frustration. Putri Yorika, who lives 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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