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Indonesians will try to drop a stopper into mud volcano

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published March 10, 2007

PORONG, Indonesia - For nine months, a gaping hole in the ground has spit out a biblical torrent of hot, black mud, swallowing thousands of homes outside Indonesia's second-largest city and attracting amazed geologists from around the world.

Most say the flow is unstoppable, but Indonesian experts refuse to listen, and they have recently begun carrying out a scheme straight from a Hollywood movie: dropping nearly 1,500 concrete balls into the mouth of the mud volcano.

"We know lots of people think this is a crazy idea," said professor Satria Bijaksana, one of three geologists behind the $130-million plan aimed at reducing the spew of the sludge as much as 70 percent. "But we think it will work."

Mud volcanos are fairly common along volatile tectonic belts and in areas rich in oil and natural gas like Indonesia.

But the eruption just outside the city of Surabaya is exceptional because of the sheer volume of mud that has been surging each day from the hole - enough to fill 50 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Twelve villages and 20 factories have been swallowed, with mud-caked roofs and the tops of lampposts the only reminders of what once was there.

Some scientists suggest the rupture was triggered by improper drilling at a nearby natural gas site. Other research points to a major earthquake two days before the mud first appeared in a rice field in May 2006.

The operation, which began last month, follows several failed attempts to contain or stop the mud.

Engineers tried building earthen dams to hold back the sludge, but they are about to overflow. The viscosity of the mud hindered efforts to channel it into the sea. A plan to cap the volcano with concrete was abandoned almost immediately.

Now, engineers are using a pulley system to hoist the beachball-sized concrete spheres over the crater before dropping them from a height of around two stories. The balls, each about 150 pounds, are chained together in clusters of four.

So far, nearly 150 have been tossed into the abyss, too few to have an effect. The government has given them five weeks to make a difference, or walk away and let the volcano run its course.

There is concern that if the hole is effectively blocked, pressure will build up behind the balls and trigger eruptions elsewhere.

But with scientists predicting the mud could flow for decades, those who have been made homeless say it's worth a shot.

[Last modified March 10, 2007, 02:18:07]