TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Stop estate projects, residents urge
Residents and environmentalists in Bandarlampung have urged Mayor Eddy Sutrisno to suspend a number of real estate projects in the hilly areas of Bukit Rasuna Said and Bukit Camang as well as the Lampung Bay reclamation project, following massive floods in the city over the weekend
Change Size
Residents and environmentalists in Bandarlampung have urged Mayor Eddy Sutrisno to suspend a number of real estate projects in the hilly areas of Bukit Rasuna Said and Bukit Camang as well as the Lampung Bay reclamation project, following massive floods in the city over the weekend.
"Bandarlampung was affected so badly by the massive floods due to the poor drainage systems and damage to catchment areas. The floods were also caused by the badly silted condition of 19 rivers which cross the city and end in Lampung Bay, where a reclamation project in underway," director of the Lampung chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (WALHI) Hendrawan told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
He added that public awareness on sanitation remained low, evident by the number of residents that continue to dump their household waste directly into the rivers.
On Dec. 20, the swollen Way Awi River engulfed the subdistricts of Kaliawi and Pasirgintung in 2.5 meter deep flood water. Besides raising panic among in-patients at the hospital, the floods paralyzed traffic until 10 p.m. on Dec. 21.
Executive Director of the Nature Lovers Community (Watala) Rini Pahwalanti said the floods had caused billions of rupiah in material damages.
"We live along Way Awi. Floods always occur during the wet season, but the floods last Saturday occurred suddenly. Our office was flooded within 15 minutes. We had to swim to save our lives," Rini said.
In response to public demand, Mayor Eddy said he had imposed a number of policies, such as suspending the real estate project at Bukit Rasuna Said and requiring the developer to restore the site as a green area.
"We will also set aside Rp 40 billion (approximately US$3.6 million) to build embankments along the entire stretch of riverbanks and improve drainage in a number of zones," Eddy said.
He added however, that the Lampung Bay reclamation project would proceed as planned, to make way for a waterfront city with the goal of developing Bandarlampung into a more orderly city and to draw visitors.
Eddy said the waterfront city project has been carried out in accordance with an environmental impact analysis.
"Flats are now ready to accommodate thousands of coastal residents. We have spruced up the once shabby area so visitors feel more at home when staying here," Eddy said.
Hospitals and clinics in Bandarlampung have been overwhelmed with diarrhea patients over the past three days. Hundreds of sick from Panjang and Tanjungkarang districts are receiving treatment in a number of hospitals, while thousands have complained of skin irritations.
Although displaced residents have returned to their homes, thousands face a shortage of clean water. A number of NGOs and political parties have been providing potable water on a daily basis by using tankers.
Besides causing illnesses, the recent floods, believed to be the worst in Bandarlampung in 23 years, have also claimed the lives of a 3-year-old boy and two elderly residents.
The total amount of damages have yet to be estimated, but many residents have lost their belongings, such as furniture and utensils.
"Thousands of my chickens and dozens of goats have all been swept away by the floods," Ruslani, 50, a farmer in Kaliawi subdistrict, Central Tanjungkarang, said.
