Rapid development causes high tides in Demak regency<\/p>\n
Text by Tertiani Simanjuntak, photos by Bertho Wedhatama<\/p>\n
SEMARANG (JP): High tides bring all good things from the sea,
\nbut what happens if it reaches your doorstep?<\/p>\n
\"The tides forced us to leave our homes. Some who stay have
\nhad to change their means of livelihood, from growing crops to
\nbecome fishermen since there is no more land to plow,\" the 40-
\nyear-old Rusdi of Morosari village in Demak regency said while
\nstaring out at the expanse of swamp land which used to be rice
\nfields.<\/p>\n
It all started in 1998 when the regency, located only one
\nkilometer from the Java Sea, was badly hit by high tides, or rob
\nin local language, drowning several villages along the banks of
\nthe Babon River which empties into the sea.<\/p>\n
\"There were times when we were woken-up in the middle of the
\nnight by an unexpected high tide flooding our homes. Sometimes
\nthe water reached up to our neck. But the effect here was not as
\nbad as in Tambaksari village,\" Rusdi said.<\/p>\n
At least three villages: Tonosari, Morosari and Tambaksari,
\nsuffered the worst effects of the perpetual flooding in Demak,
\nsome 40 kilometers from the heart of the Central Java capital of
\nSemarang.<\/p>\n
Only six families insisted on staying in the abandoned
\nTambaksari village along the estuary of the Babon River while
\nsome 60 other families have chosen to be relocated to the new
\nTambaksari village, some three kilometers away.<\/p>\n
Marhanah, a woman in her 60s, said they preferred to live on
\nthe land which is gradually subsiding because it was the ideal
\nplace for the closely-knit fishermens' families to reach the sea.<\/p>\n
\"I was born here where my ancestors were buried. We have lived
\noff the sea all these years. It's better to stay here,\" she said
\nwhile cleaning fish to be sold to a food stall selling fried fish
\nin Morosari market which opens in the afternoon.<\/p>\n
The remaining families, who are led by Marhanah's eldest
\nbrother Zaini, sell their catch and purchase their daily needs at
\nthe nearest market by boat, the fastest transportation to reach
\nthe hamlet.<\/p>\n
Children of the three small villages go to the nearest
\nelementary school in the Tonosari village by boat or on foot,
\nwalking through slippery paths. They don't have to wear socks and
\nshoes since stagnate water fills the classrooms as high as their
\nankles.<\/p>\n
The banks of the river where it crosses the village have been
\ncemented and a sea wall to anchor their motorboats has been built
\nto protect the six houses from the high tides, but those
\nbarricades have to be raised from time to time.<\/p>\n
The residents even elevated the floor of their houses until it
\nalmost reached the windowsill just to prevent the water from
\nentering their homes.<\/p>\n
\"The land keeps sinking. It seems that we are getting closer
\nand closer to the sea,\" Marhanah said.<\/p>\n
A study of the Central Java chapter of the Indonesian Forum
\nfor the Environment (Walhi) assessed that the coastal area of
\nSemarang province is prone to land subsidence where the sea water
\ncan reach as far inland as 1.5 kilometers from the shore.<\/p>\n
The topography of the land shows that the coastal area is
\nbelow sea level.<\/p>\n
The massive industrial development in the region in recent
\nyears, is a major concern as the fragile land cannot bear the
\nconstruction of factories, buildings and real estate established
\nthere.<\/p>\n
\"The development has ignored the environment of the coastal
\narea. The sea wall which protects the industrial area and the
\nharbor, is one of the concerns as it causes massive sea waves to
\nhit the land outside the area ... and it sacrifices the Babon
\nRiver,\" Walhi chairman M. Abdul Rohim Mandanganu said.<\/p>\n
\"The high tides do not occur because of God's will upon the
\npeople here, it is caused by greedy people and erroneous
\ndevelopment plans which do not consider the local people or the
\nenvironmental perspective.\"<\/p>\n
The villagers also pointed out that the water is contaminated
\nwith industrial waste and is polluting their fish hatcheries
\nresulting in a decrease in their harvest.<\/p>\n
Rusdi, who owns three boats which he uses to lend to families
\nand neighbors, said they are waiting for the government to help
\nthem cope with the problems.<\/p>\n
\"We can survive the floods. But, we need the government to
\nhelp improve the conditions here instead of encouraging us to
\nmove out,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/rapid-development-causes-high-tides-in-demak-regency-1447893297",
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