N. Sulawesi's Lake Tondano now only 12 meters deep

Lake Tondano in Minahasa, North Sulawesi, has become shallower over the years, with the depth now being a mere 12 meters, an official said on Thursday.

“We took measurements in three different locations in 2010. The depth has decreased to just 12 meters,” North Sulawesi Environmental Management Agency official Arfan Basuki said in Manado as quoted by Antara.

Arfan said that when first measured in 1934, Lake Tondano's average depth was 40 meters. In 1974, it was 28 meters and in 1983, 27 meters.

In 1993, it had decreased to 23 meters, in 1996 to 18 meters and in 2010 it was discovered to be a mere 12 meters.

Asfan said there were various causes, including fish farming activities around the lake, with unconsumed fish food creating sediment on the lake bed; and rice farming activities in surrounding areas, from which mud flowed into the lake and added to the sediment.

“If we fail to deal with it soon, the lake may end up like Lake Limboto in Gorontalo, which has been getting shallower and is starting to disappear.”

Arfan said Lake Tondano was critical for North Sulawesi not only because it was a tourist destination and fish farming hub but also because it helped state electricity firm PT PLN power some of its turbines, which light up the province.