Bandung's mountains being blown to bits

Bandung's mountains being blown to bits

Text and photo by Kafil Yamin

BANDUNG (JP): Once upon a time, so the story goes, a shaman
built a long tunnel to channel water from a gigantic lake to
another area.

The water flowed through the tunnel and the lake ran dry. It
became a new settlement for locals and grew prosperous; it later
was called Bandung, today the capital of West Java.

In the lore of the Sundanese people, this folktale (the
tunnel, Sanghyang Tikoro, is still there) explains why the
Bandung area is like a gigantic hollow in the heart of West Java,
ringed by a crest of hills and mountains stretching far into the
province's hinterland.

But those famous hills, which became a favorite resort and
retirement area for the Dutch colonists, are disappearing fast.

With a swelling population of more than three million, Bandung
is in constant need of construction materials. Demand for gravel
and limestone for the construction of real estate complexes and
private housing has led to the proliferation of quarrying in the
surrounding hillsides.

Some of the mountains have disappeared, flattened by blasting
and, ironically, are now themselves the sites of housing
complexes and factories.

At least half of the hilly Padalarang area is now flat. It is
the center of the blasting where miners seek stones, gravel and
limestone. The blasting follows the line of the mountain range
stretching from Padalarang westward to Purwakarta.

With similar intensity, it moves southward to Sukabumi. Travel
through the area, and prepare to be confronted by ear-shattering
explosions and a swirl of dust.

Through the 1980s, Bandung's mountains were an attraction for
local and foreign tourists. People would stop their cars on a
mountain road to gaze out over the breath-taking panorama.

"We can't do that anymore," said Agus Handayana, a driver who
has been regularly traveling the Bandung-Jakarta route since
1980. "I would prefer to keep going and get some rest in Jakarta
or Bandung."

There is no official data on the number of mountains and hills
within the Bandung area, or how many of them have been leveled as
a result of the construction boom.

A geology expert at the Bandung Institute of Technology, Prof.
Sampurno, said there were numerous mountain ranges stretching out
in every direction.

"Westwards, the mountains and their foothills stretch from
Padalarang to Purwakarta. Southwards, they stand side by side
like a giant wall as far as Sukabumi. To the north, the Lembang
and Dago highlands are connected to Tangkuban Perahu and hundreds
of mountains stretch as far as Subang and Pamanukan. To the east,
a line of mountains stretches from Manglayang mountain in
Ujungberung to Cikuray mountain in Ciamis," he said.

None of them have escaped the blasting activities, which are
taking place on all sides. While uplands and hills in Padalarang
have been given over to housing complexes and factories, the
other end of Cicalengka has long been home to resorts for the
middle classes.

Consequences

Today, the undesirable consequences are being felt. Bandung,
which in old stories was caressed by soft breezes, is now
battered by strong, dusty winds which frequently damage homes,
uproot trees and disrupt the telephone and electricity services.

"Bandung has no natural walls now," said Sampurno.

Even at normal rainfall levels, there is the danger of
landslides as the result of erosion in the surrounding hillsides.
Homes have been destroyed and people killed by landslides in
Maragaasih district and Dayeuh Kolot.

The products of the blasting have brought some physical
benefits, such as houses, roads and other infrastructure.
Construction companies and the government have made windfall
gains from the quarrying.

Sampurno and environmental experts worry that the short-term
gains will be overshadowed by the long-term drawbacks.

"No one would deny the economic advantages of these
activities, but as humane and civilized people we have to put
safeguards into place when we do something," Sampurno said.

Unfortunately, any concerns about the consequences have been
pushed aside by avarice, he added.

"When our actions cause changes to nature, we are supposed to
take steps so as to prevent any adverse impacts. But now, only
three things occur to us: money, money and more money," Sampurno
said.

"We are greedy and short-sighted people."