Kampar, Riau, July 31 (ANTARA) - Tens of children under five at Petapahan village in Riau province suffered diarrhea throughout July for consuming polluted river water, a midwife said.
At least four children under five were treated at the Tapung public health service post per day for diarrhea, Imelda, the post's midwife, said here on Saturday.
"The children mostly came from parents who still consume river water," she said.
Most of residents at the village consume water from Tapung river to which a number of oil palm companies dispose of waste.
Buchari, a resident of Petapahan village, said diarrhea was the disease which commonly affected children under five at the village.
"We have reported it (the polluted river water) to the Kampar district environmental management board but we have not received any response yet," he said.
Separately, on Saturday, Chief of the Riau Chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) Jhony S Mundung said Tapung river had been polluted since 2005 based on the results of a study made by the Kampar district environmental management board.
Actually, the river water was no longer fit for consuming. But because the local residents' dependence on the river was still high, they still used the river water in their daily life.
