Conservationists and residents in Lampung have protested the construction of a housing estate on Bukit Rasuna Said Hill (Lungsir Hill) in Bandarlampung, citing that the development could damage a water catchment area and cause floods.
"Lungsir Hill was part of the city's forest before and protected by the Bandarlampung city administration. No one was allowed to build any buildings there," said director of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment's (Walhi) Lampung chapter Hendrawan on Oct. 17.
"We are surprised now that a real estate company is engaged in earth moving operations and is building roads on (the hill)."
The project will convert part of the hill's forest area into an upscale housing complex, leaving residents beneath the site vulnerable to landslides, flooding and erosion, he said.
"The change of status from a city forest into real estate housing means the city no longer has a natural forest, while the manmade forest created on the fringes of the city seems barren.
"This is strange because the city's only lung is being changed into a housing area. If it rains, people living below the hill will become subject to floods due to grading and excavation work," Hendrawan said.
Residents living near the area have threatened to block the road leading to the project site if construction continues.
"We don't want here to become reminiscent of the Camang Hill disaster in which landslides and floods occurred because the top (of the hill) was leveled off to make way for a real estate project," said local resident Syafei, 50, from Gulak-Galik subdistrict, North Telukbetung district, Bandarlampung.
The Camang project, carried out by developer company PT Batu Indah Estate, was temporarily halted by Bandarlampung municipality in August this year, but the company was later allowed to complete the project.
The developer of Rasuna Hill has also built a 10-meter wide road which will serve as the main access way to the housing complex, but locals are concerned soil runoff produced by the construction of the road could flow directly into their lower-lying homes.
Rasuna Hill serves as a catchment area and a source of fresh water for residents living below.
Bukit Rasuna is a much sought after site, with panoramic views of the adjacent Lampung Bay, and lies close to the site of a luxury mansion owned by one of former president Soeharto's sons.
PT Batu Indah Real Estate operational manager Deni Jaelani said only 30 percent of the hill's total area would be developed as real estate, while the rest would serve as fields and open areas.
According to company spokesperson Nurita, her company received the license to build the housing complex directly from Bandarlampung Mayor Eddy Sutrisno.
"We received the city spatial planning (license) from the mayor. Only 30 percent of the area will be built on," she said.
Deni said his company had constructed a catch pool and a storm drain to prevent flooding. He added that floodings that hit the lower lying areas recently were caused by clogged drains along roadways and not by run off from Bukit Lungsir Hill.
Bandarlampung is laced with dozens of hills, most of which have been damaged by mining, while others have been developed into upscale housing complexes.
Bukit Randu Hill is now the site of a luxury hotel and restaurant, while Bukit Camang, which had served as a water catchment area for the last five years, has been developed into an upscale real estate plot by a company owned by Artalita Suryani alias Ayin, who was convicted for corruption.
Waste material produced by the project, which was conducted by PT Bukit Alam Surya, was given to PT BAS for its Lampung Bay coastal reclamation project.
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