Government to curb Puncak development

Government to curb Puncak development

JAKARTA (JP): The office of the state minister for agrarian affairs will control and supervise all building construction in the tourist resort of Puncak, West Java, following an edict by President Soeharto.

State Minister Soni Harsono told reporters after meeting with President Soeharto at Bina Graha Office yesterday said that supervision and control is expected to curb the changes in land use in this hilly area, which lead to floods lower down in Jakarta.

Soni said 1,350 hectares of agricultural land in Ciawi and Cisarua, in Puncak have been sold by farmers between 1983 and 1990 for non-agricultural purposes, mainly for villas.

The trend of selling agricultural land in Puncak and Bogor has been increasing, he said.

Bogor, Puncak and Cianjur play important roles in protecting Jakarta from floods. The floods in Jakarta in the recent years were the results of the disappearance of forests and other water catchment areas, due largely to construction.

Many building owners have failed to abide by regulations, he said, explaining that protected forests have been cleared to make way for residential areas. "This has caused very serious problems for the environment, specifically for the hydrological balance," he said.

"The building permits may be reviewed. New houses should not have been built on this land. If necessary, buildings will be demolished," Soni said.

Soon after the Presidential Decree No. 79 was issued in 1985 several villas and bungalows built on the wrong land were demolished, and no new buildings were built for a while.

However, both the people and the local authorities "forgot" about the decree years later, and several new buildings were built. Protected forests were cut down to make way for new villas.

Soni admitted that the earlier decree had not been effective. (sur)