City, ministry team up to redesign north coast
City, ministry team up to redesign north coast
Damar Harsanto, Jakarta
The city adminstration and the state environment ministry are
planning a redesign of the ongoing land reclamation project on
the northern coast of Jakarta.
The decision was made in a meeting late on Friday between
State Minister for the Environment Nabiel Makarim and Governor
Sutiyoso, following an order made earlier by President Megawati
Soekarnoputri to review the project.
"Both of us agreed to form a joint team, manned by officials
from the Jakarta administration and the ministry. The team is
tasked with creating environmental impact assessments of the
project," Sutiyoso said.
Sutiyoso said the team would be formed by the end of this
month.
"Hopefully, the team will complete its analysis this year," he
said.
The Sutiyoso-endorsed reclamation project has come under fire
as critics focus on the potential environmental damage to the
ecosystem on the coastline. The environment office has rejected
the plan because of its inadequate environmental impact analysis.
Experts at the office project the reclamation will lead to
flooding in the northern part of the capital, worsening the
annual problem.
The Rp 20 trillion (US$2.1 billion) project would involve the
reclamation of about 2,700 hectares of land to build a modern
port, business centers and housing estates.
The project was endorsed in presidential decree No. 52/1995,
after several developers involved in the project took legal
action in the Jakarta Administrative Court against the office
over its decision to halt the project.
Early in February, the court ruled in favor of the developers.
The office then appealed to the Supreme Court and is awaiting its
decision.
Nabiel said after the meeting his office had no objection if
the city went ahead with the reclamation project.
"Our concern is simply the environmental damage resulting from
the development. We still require the administration to revise
their plan to maintain the environment," Nabiel said.
If the revision failed to significantly minimize adverse
environmental impact, the office would again reject the plan, he
said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo said the reclamation
could actually help limit flooding in the city.
"We did have an (environmental impact) analysis of the plan.
The analysis shows we could help mitigate floods in the city
as the project harnesses sea tides," Fauzi said.
He said the development would be integrated with other flood
mitigation systems, including the construction of the east and
west flood canals.