ANALISIS KETERGANTUNGAN MASYARAKAT TERHADAP AIR MINUM KEMASAN DI TENGAH KEBERADAAN LAYANAN PDAM (PERUSAHAAN DAERAH AIR MINUM): STUDI KASUS KABUPATEN TULUNGAGUNG

Abstract

This study examines the phenomenon of community dependence on bottled water (AMDK) in Tulungagung Regency amid the presence of the PDAM Tirta Cahya Agung public water service. Employing a qualitative approach grounded in in-depth interviews, field observations, and a review of academic literature and public policy documents, this research analyzes the sociological roots of the shift in public trust from state water services toward private water products. Drawing on Ulrich Beck's Risk Society theoretical framework, this study argues that dependence on bottled water is not merely an individual consumption choice, but rather a rational response to manufactured risk. Risks arising from the failure to modernize aging pipe infrastructure, uneven distribution, and operational crises such as the breakdown of the Jatiwekas Water Treatment Plant in June 2025 have eroded public confidence in PDAM. These conditions have driven residents to turn to the private market as a self-protection strategy. The process of water commodification that ensues creates a dual economic burden and systematic social inequality: middle-to-upper-income groups can readily access certified bottled water, while vulnerable populations depend on refill depots whose water quality remains unguaranteed. This study further identifies an irony characteristic of Beck's risk society, whereby the very solution chosen by residents to avoid the risks of PDAM water gives rise to new risks in the form of microplastic contamination, coliform bacterial exposure, and ecological problems stemming from plastic waste. Accordingly, reforming public water governance in Tulungagung requires more than technical fixes alone it must address the dimensions of social justice and the restoration of citizens' fundamental right to safe water