A flood mitigation team unfolded Wednesday its strategic plan to free Jakarta from floods by 2025, which includes clearing settlements off riverbanks and waste management.
“We have already set up a short-term, medium-term and long-term plan of action,” said director general of water resources Irwan Nusyirwan at a workshop on strategic planning to reduce flood risks in Jakarta.
This strategic planning stems from collaborative work between the Dutch and Indonesian governments.
The short-, middle- and long- term plans all involve clearing buildings from areas close to water basins.
“Regulating the use of buildings and providing information about the risk [of floods] to people can minimize the losses suffered,” said Jakarta Flood Management team leader Roy Timmer.
To relocate the evicted, the team recommended building low-cost apartments.
To make sure the areas were cleared of squatters, the team plans to monitor the water basin areas regularly.
In Jakarta, all 13 rivers and several dams like Pluit are chock-a-block with thousands of illegal settlements, mostly housing lower-income citizens although some are also commercial buildings or even government offices.
The flood mitigation team is also planning to integrate waste management into its plan — which is expected to reduce the amount of waste clogging Jakarta’s rivers — by improving community-based waste processing systems.
The long-term plan will focus on groundwater exploitation, including monitoring licenses and the use groundwater extraction.
The long-term plan also addresses deforestation in higher areas such as West Java forests.
Timmer recommended monitoring improvements online, an early flood warning system and knowledge sharing about flood risk reduction.
“Protecting ourselves from floods means minimizing social, economic and cultural losses to a level acceptable to the people and government,” said Widagdo, the director of river, lake and dam directorate at the Ministry of Public Works.
Some 40 percent of Jakarta’s land area is categorized as low-level. Seawater intrusion also threatens some parts of North Jakarta that are below sea level.
To mitigate the impact of floods along northern coastal areas, the team recommended improving safety along the coast, including fortifying eroded sea walls and dykes.
The strategic plans requires coordination and good communication between different stakeholders.
The Public Works Ministry, as well as Jakarta’s Spatial Planning and Sanitation Agencies participated in the planning session. (nia)
Strategic Plans
Short-term
1. Controlling urbanization
2. Provision of high-rise settlements
3. Opening up employment for relocated residents
4. Controlling and monitoring utilization of water basin areas
5. Strengthening the commitments of all stakeholders
6. Provision of funds to finance projects
7. Improvement of community-based solid and liquid waste management.
8. Improvement of capacity building among government institutions and the public
Medium-term
1. Continuation of point 1 to 8 in the short term plans
2. Improving the safety of northern coastal areas
Long-term
1. Continuation of point 1 to 4 of the short-term plans
2. Monitoring and controlling groundwater use
3. Controlling and law enforcement against violation of land use
4. Controlling and law enforcement against illegal loggers and deforestation actors
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