News Focus - DUTCH-PROPOSED PLAN OFFERS LONG-TERM SOLUTION TO JAKARTA FLOODING by Fardah

    Jakarta, April 14, 2014 (Antara) - Following the Jakarta major floods in 2007, the Dutch government has decided to give consultation assistance to address the flooding problem in Indonesia's capital city.
    Starting 2008, Indonesian and Dutch experts from the public and private sectors and research institutions worked on the Master Plan for National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) for six years.

        When the draft master plan was completed, the Dutch government represented by Infrastructure and Environmental Affairs Minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen delivered the plan during her visit to Indonesia, from March 30 to April 4, 2014.

        "This is an ambitious plan. This plan is one with imaginative solutions, such as an outer sea wall in the form of Indonesia's national symbol, the Great Garuda. The Master Plan is on schedule, in line with the desire of the Indonesian government to speed up the project," the Dutch minister said when presenting the NCICD master plan.

         The draft master plan was officially received by Indonesia's Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto, who later said the plan will be discussed by a team of Indonesian experts and followed by implementation of relevant projects.
    The master plan, which was drafted in the past few years, was designed among others by the Dutch companies Grontmij and Witteveen + Bos, and it contained a detailed design, a feasibility study for various components and funding procedures.

         The projects under the master plan will include a giant sea wall, water pump station, seaport, pipe relocation, undersea cable, mangrove forest relocation, sanitation facility and land reclamation as well as several other infrastructure projects.
   The projects will be implemented in three stages and the first stage will be implemented this year, according to him.

        The integrated development of Jakarta's coastal area is aimed at protecting the city's inhabitants from floods and revitalizing its housing condition.

         Minister Djoko Kirmanto said the master plan consisted of a vision as well as practical recommendations aimed at guaranteeing the safety of North Jakarta's 4-5 million inhabitants by 2025.

         A few experts believed that 90 percent of North Jakarta's areas will be below sea level by 2030.
    Jakarta, home to about 10-12 million people during the work day, is facing significant challenges. The rate of land subsidence is some 15 centimeter per year, due to groundwater extraction, and an increasingly larger section of the city is below the sea level.

         Heavy rainfall combined with years of overdue maintenance on flood defenses increased the possibility of flooding. Also, rising urbanization was putting pressure on the drinking water supply.

         "In Jakarta, the speed at which spatial planning and water management must be adapted to the growing population and economy is unparalleled. I am proud to present this plan to you and I have faith in the cooperation between our two countries," Minister Schultz said at the presentation.

          Minister Schultz van Haegen's visit that leads a trade mission to Jakarta and Surabaya, is a follow-up of the mission to Jakarta led by Dutch Prime Minister Rutte in November 2013.

        Eighteen Dutch companies and organizations from the water and port sectors accompanied the minister. They hope to contribute further to the new hydraulic engineering and port development projects in Indonesia.

        "Huge efforts will be needed to protect the population of Jakarta from the risk of floods. The Netherlands and Dutch businesses and centers of expertise are happy to offer assistance. Water offers new opportunities to strengthen the ties between both our countries," the Dutch minister emphasized.

       The Master Plan not only offers an integrated solution for water safety but also for other problems in the city, including water quality and improvements in the city's infrastructure.

        To reduce traffic burdens in the city, a series of toll routes and a public transport network will be created. Long-term plans involve the construction of a large dyke to seal off the Bay of Jakarta.

        Behind the dyke, a large water retention lake will be created, in which peak discharge flows from the city can be temporarily stored before being pumped into the sea. 
   Between one thousand and four thousand hectares of extra land will be reclaimed, allowing the city to expand. This supplanted land will take on the iconic shape of the Great Garuda, the patron eagle bird of Indonesia.

         "On the basis of this presented draft, extensive dialogue will take place over the next few months with the Indonesian government.

    The definitive Master Plan is expected to be ready on August 1. We, at Grontmij, are proud of the opportunity to work on this ambitious yet essential plan, together with the other partners in the consortium," co-team leader of the Master Plan team and Program Manager Delta Technology at Grontmij, Alex Hekman, declared.

         The coordinating ministry for economic affairs' infrastructure deputy, Lucky Eko Wuryanto, described that as a whole, the draft master plan, could be modified further and would provide a long-term solution to the to the flooding problems in the capital city.
    While in Jakarta, Schultz van Haegen also officially renewed the cooperation between her ministry and the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).

        "The cooperation includes transfer of technology," Chairman of BMKG Andi Eka Sakya remarked earlier in April, while receiving the Dutch Minister. Indonesia and The Netherlands have established cooperation in climate and weather since 2009.

           "The cooperation has yielded an early flood warning system, which has been installed in the Ciliwung river basin and surrounding areas," he explained. ***3***
(f001/INE/a014)
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(T.F001/A/BESSR/A/A. Abdussalam) 14-04-2014 20:05:27