Lapindo should pay costs of damages caused by mud floods: President

Speaking during a trip to the areas affected by the mud floods in Porong, Sidoardjo, East Java, on Friday, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said that all the costs needed to cope with the hot mud floods would be the responsibility of PT Lapindo Brantas Inc.

The President, however, said that although Lapindo would pay all the costs arising as the result of the mud floods, the government would also provide relief funds of about Rp 1 billion to help the villagers who had to flee their homes due to the mud floods.

Yudhoyono said he was happy to find out that Lapindo had agreed to bear all the costs needed in dealing with the hot mud floods which had not only damaged rice farming fields but also residential areas located near the company's exploration well.

A number of measures have been taken to stop the mud flows from the well, but to no avail A number of embankments or dams have also been built to prevent the floods from spreading to wider areas, but they had a little help as some of them broke down due to the increase in the mud volume.

On Thursday Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro disclosed the four measures for Lapindo?s mud problem were first, ensuring the safety of affected residents and providing adequate compensation; second, ensuring that the basic infrastructure, such as the toll road and railway line, can work well; third, all of the steps taken should not have an adverse impact on the environment and fourth, all of the related costs should be born by Lapindo. (*)