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ncreasing beach reclamation work in Manado city and parts of Minahasa regency, North Sulawesi, for the last 15 years are feared to be causing damage to the environment.

Lecturer Hesky Kolibu of state-run Sam Ratulangi University'€™s School of Math and Natural Sciences in Manado said that beach reclamation could damage the ecosystem, such as by causing a loss of biodiversity.

Reclamation, according to Hesky, could make different species of mangroves as well as other species such as fish, shellfish, crabs and birds disappear from the environment.

'€œOther impacts include an increased potential for flooding as reclamation could change both the geomorphology and hydrology of the reclaimed areas,'€ Hesky said on Friday.

The changes, according to him, include alterations in the flatness, in river sediment composition, tide patterns, sea current patterns along the beach and damage in the waterworks areas.

'€œThe potential for floods will increase even more when the seawater level also increases because of global warming,'€ he said.

Data at the North Sulawesi Provincial Fishery and Marine Agency showed that 19 reclamation licenses were issued during the period of 1998 to 2010, most of which were for developing business and culinary areas.

The head of the agency'€™s coastal marine and small islands (KP3K) and marine and fishery resource control (SDKP) division, Sri Intan Motol, said that of the 19 licenses issued, eight were issued for beach reclamation in Manado and the remaining 11 were granted for reclamation in the Minahasa regency coastal areas.

'€œAll the reclamation activities in this list are legal and conducted according to the prevailing regulations,'€ Sri Intan said.

Sri Intan added that reclamation licenses were only issued after they met all the requirements and after undergoing thorough study.

Reclamation is regulated in Law No 27/2007 on Coastal Area and Small Island Management.

Up to the present, the total reclaimed area in Manado is 114 hectares and in Minahasa is 36 hectares.

Separately, environment expert Veronica Kumurur said that if conducted in the right way, reclamation would not cause flooding.

'€œManado is flat. Reclamation should be conducted by providing good drainage,'€ Veronica said.

She said that if the reclaimed areas were higher than the surroundings then water could not flow smoothly, aside from if waste clogged the drainage facilities.

'€œIf the system is not good and the elevation is not right, for sure floods will happen there,'€ she said.