Masterplan revision reduces green areas<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
When the tollroad to Soekarno-Hatta Airport flooded, many
\nblamed Pantai Indah Kapuk (PIK) luxury housing estate, which is
\nbuilt on protected mangrove forest along coastal areas of Kapuk
\nMuara in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
But housing estates are not the only projects built on
\nlocations that were protected as green areas. Pondok Indah
\nHospital and Hotel Mulia in South Jakarta, and Taman Anggrek
\ncondominium and shopping center in West Jakarta have also
\ncontributed to the capital's dwindling water catchment areas.<\/p>\n
The development of those projects were made possible with the
\nissuance of the 1995-2010 Jakarta Masterplan, which is a revision
\nof the 1985-2005 Jakarta Masterplan.<\/p>\n
Marco Kusumawijaya, a city planning expert, told The Jakarta
\nPost on Tuesday that the 1995-2010 Jakarta Masterplan was
\nenforced after the development of Pantai Indah Kapuk.<\/p>\n
In the revised land-use masterplan, many green areas,
\nincluding those in Kapuk Muara, Tomang, and Sunter have
\ndisappeared.<\/p>\n
Marco warned that the current masterplan of Jakarta is already
\na violation of sound environmental principles. Worse, there have
\nbeen many violations of the masterplan approved by corrupt
\nofficials.<\/p>\n
Marco said that such officials at the city administration
\nshould be replaced in order to stop such violations.<\/p>\n
\"We have frequently heard about violations against the
\nmasterplan, which has resulted in dwindling water catchment
\nareas, therefore, it is time for all parties to rethink their
\npast mistakes,\" he added.<\/p>\n
He said that the city administration should stop issuing
\nlicense permits for physical development projects, particularly
\nthose that require vast plots of land, as the remaining space
\nshould be maintained as green areas.<\/p>\n
\"The ongoing floods are causing misery to hundreds of
\nthousands of Jakartans. This experience should be a good lesson
\nfor bureaucrats who always think of their own interests,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Sharing Marco's idea, Joe Fernandez of the Institute for
\nPolicy and Community Development Studies (IPCOS), said that
\nlicense permits should only be issued for the development of
\napartments.<\/p>\n
\"If the city administration considers that residential areas
\nare still needed, they should be in the form of apartments, which
\ncould accommodate a lot of people without requiring a lot of
\nspace,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Fernandez pointed out another problem as to why the city
\nadministration was not able to resolve the flood problems: That
\nthe governors only focused on short-term programs that could be
\ncompleted within their terms of office.<\/p>\n
\"A development is a continuing process. If certain projects
\nare not finished by a governor, the process should be continued
\nby his successor,\" he said.<\/p>\n
According to Fernandez, there are still many other projects
\nconstructed on preserved land along river banks and green belts.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Marco also stressed that public participation is
\nthe key to any policy's success, including the effort to resolve
\nthe annual flood-related problems through public campaigns. It
\nwould be successful if the public realized that building houses
\nclose to riverbanks and throwing garbage into rivers only worsens
\nproblems related to flooding, said Marco, adding that strong
\nleadership was needed to encourage greater public participation.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/masterplan-revision-reduces-green-areas-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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