Cooperation to preserve water catchment urged
JAKARTA (JP): Governor Surjadi Soedirdja underlined late last week the importance of cooperation between Jakarta and West Java in preserving water catchment areas.
Speaking at a ceremony marking the change of management at the Ciburial water reservoir in Bogor regency, the governor said that coordination is badly needed to help secure an adequate water supply for Jakartans.
"Cooperation between the two regions to preserve water catchment areas needs to be expanded further," he stressed.
He added that any effort must be coordinated with all sectors, including housing developers, to prevent overlapping.
He explained that his office has limited the number of artesian wells and declared South Jakarta a water catchment area to solve the problem.
Ciburial water reservoir in Ciomas district, Bogor, covers 14 hectares. It was first used in 1922 to provide water to Batavia (now Jakarta) but now supplies Jakarta and the Bogor regency.
The agreement to transfer the management of the facility was reached in 1989.
"Under the new management, the facility is expected to better provide drinking water to people in both areas," Sumitro Maskun, director general of General Administration and Regional Autonomy of the Ministry of Home Affairs, said at the ceremony.
"Water from the Ciburial reservoir will be distributed to consumers in Cijantung and Kramat Jati in East Jakarta and other areas between Jakarta and Bogor," Governor Surjadi said.
He explained that at the moment the city water company, PDAM Jaya, produces 12,335 liters of water per second, fulfilling 45 percent of the demand in Jakarta. By 2000 production capacity will be raised to 18,100 liters per second, supplying 63 percent of Jakarta's population.
According to data provided by the Geology Environment Directorate the total ground water potential in the city is estimated at 77 million cubic meters per year and the estimated limit of safe usage is 48 million cubic meter per year, of which 33 million cubic meter are utilized by 2,898 artesian wells in operation in the city. (yns)