Two 18-hole golf courses face destruction<\/p>\n
Primastuti Handayani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The existence of 31 golf courses in Greater Jakarta was
\napparently one cause of the big floods last week.<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso announced on Thursday that his
\nadministration had agreed to the demolition of two 18-hole golf
\ncourses: Pantai Indah Kapuk in North Jakarta and Kemayoran in
\nCentral Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Under sharp criticism of his poor performance in preventing
\nthe big floods and assisting the victims, Sutiyoso might
\nsacrifice both courses to prevent further flooding in the future.<\/p>\n
The Pantai Indah Kapuk course will be converted into a water
\nholding area behind a dam to control flooding while the Kemayoran
\ncourse will become a forest.<\/p>\n
His decision, if it is implemented, will cost a fortune for
\nluxury housing estates, which mostly provide golf courses to
\nattract customers.<\/p>\n
In the early 1990s, the golf course development boom was
\nprotested by farmers whose land was bought cheaply -- some only
\nreceived Rp 150 (7.3 US cents at 1993 exchange rates), per square
\nmeter.<\/p>\n
Courses located on hundreds of hectares of productive land and
\nalong the Ciliwung river damage the quality of the environment
\nand pose a flooding threat to Jakartans.<\/p>\n
Environmentalist Longgena Ginting, campaigns director of the
\nIndonesian Environment Forum (Walhi), criticized city people who
\nclaimed they were friends of nature but in fact abused it.<\/p>\n
\"Most golf courses in Indonesia were developed following land
\nuse conversion. They always changed the natural contours when
\ndeveloping a golf course,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The special treatment needed for \"exotic\" grass -- mostly
\nimported from Australia, Japan and America -- places a burden on
\nthe surrounding environment.<\/p>\n
\"Spraying pesticides and fertilizers in such monoculture areas
\ncan affect the soil structure. Besides, the imported grass
\nconsumes more water than local grasses,\" Ginting said.<\/p>\n
\"There must be a special environmental evaluation carried out
\non each golf course, especially on the water catchment beneath
\nthe grass.\"<\/p>\n
The Global Antigolf Movement says in its website, \"the
\nenvironmental impacts include water depletion and toxic
\ncontamination of the soil, underground water, surface water and
\nthe air. This, in turn, leads to health problems for local
\ncommunities, populations downstream and even golfers, caddies and
\npeople spraying chemicals on golf courses.<\/p>\n
\"The construction of golf courses in scenic natural sites,
\nsuch as forest areas and coral islands, also results in the
\ndestruction of biodiversity.\"<\/p>\n
But Chairman of the Indonesian Golf Course Management
\nAssociation (APLGI) Yuwono Kolopaking rejected all such
\nstatements.<\/p>\n
\"The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America has
\npublished a study that found that a course also serves as a lung
\nfor its surrounding area, a dust pollution filter, absorbs
\nrainwater and prevents erosion.\"<\/p>\n
\"Golf course designers usually retain trees and bushes in the
\nrough to help the soil absorb water better.\"<\/p>\n
Yuwono said that the development of a golf course always
\nrequired a permit following an environmental impact analysis.<\/p>\n
\"Each course is checked twice a year. Should it violate any
\nenvironmental regulations, the local environmental impact
\nmanagement agency, which issues the permit, will demand that the
\nviolation is rectified.\"<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, the procedures might not always be properly
\nfollowed as there are many corrupt officials and crooked
\nbusinesspeople here.<\/p>\n
Controversy on this issue will continue into the future. It is
\nmost important to enforce the existing regulations on golf course
\ndevelopment.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/two-18-hole-golf-courses-face-destruction-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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