Kali Wonosari Spring: An Oasis Amidst Gunungkidul's Drought

In the hills of Duwet Hamlet, Purwodadi Village, Tepus Sub-district, Gunungkidul Regency, there is a spring known locally as thuk Kali Wonosari.

The spring area is fairly extensive. However, when the dry season arrives, its water discharge shrinks drastically and nearly dries up.

The spring is not the crystal-clear water source often depicted in bottled water advertisements. To the naked eye, the water appears murky, far from pristine. Even so, for local residents, the spring is the mainstay of life when drought strikes.

Every dry season, the site is always busy with residents arriving carrying jerrycans and used mineral water gallons to fill and take home. This tradition, passed down through generations, is known as ngangsu banyu.

In one corner of the spring pool stand two simple bathing cubicles made of cement, without roofs or paint. The men’s and women’s cubicles are separated only by a wall about two metres high. To bathe, residents must draw water using a bucket tied to a rope so it can reach the water surface at the bottom of the pool.

Although the water is murky, residents regard the Kali Wonosari spring as an oasis amid the drought. Almost every day the place is never empty of visitors, especially when the dry season begins to trigger a clean water crisis.

Residents are willing to queue to get water. Some modify their motorcycles to carry jerrycans, while others carry water gallons slung using a jarik (a long batik cloth), a sight still commonly seen in the villages of Gunungkidul.

Ngangsu banyu

Under the shade of ketos, laban and munggur trees surrounding the pool, Wiwin (30) carries a used mineral water gallon slung with a jarik. With careful steps, she descends the cliff towards the water source, then fills her gallon from a small puddle. From between the rocks, water flows slowly through a split bamboo pipe serving as a simple channel.

“It has been the case since the days of our ancestors — people here have always done ngangsu banyu because water is always scarce during the dry season,” said Wiwin as she tightened the jarik wrapped around her body.

Since May, when her home began running short of water, Wiwin has made the trip four to five times a day from her house to the Kali Wonosari spring to fetch water. The spring is about two kilometres from her home.

She usually sets off at 05:00 local time before starting her daily activities. The water she carries is used for cooking and meeting household needs.

“Almost every day I carry jerrycans and used mineral water gallons, going up and down here to meet the water needs at home,” she said.

When the water supply at home runs low, Wiwin often also comes at night to fetch water.

Another Duwet resident, Wahyu (34), also depends on the spring for his family’s water needs. He takes turns queuing with other residents while carrying two jerrycans with a capacity of 30 litres each.

“I bring two jerrycans, transported on a motorcycle that has been modified at the back,” he said.

According to Wahyu, the ngangsu banyu tradition is only practised during the dry season, especially when drought strikes. During the rainy season, residents’ water needs are generally met through rainwater harvesting tanks owned by almost every household.

Surviving the water crisis

Most villages in Tepus Sub-district feel the impact of drought every dry season. Residents make use of the remaining springs before they dry up completely.

In a number of areas, the network of the regional drinking water company (PDAM) has yet to reach all settlements. Some residents end up buying clean water from water trucking services.

“Even then you have to queue. The waiting time can be up to two weeks,” said Wiwin.

As a result, although it appears murky, the water from thuk Kali Wonosari remains a lifeline for residents. Before consumption, the water is first boiled and filtered to reduce sediment.

“Usually from August to September the number of residents fetching water will increase, while the water discharge actually dwindles further,” she said.

Efforts to tackle the drought

The Gunungkidul Regency Government, through the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), continues its efforts to handle the impact of the drought occurring in a number of areas.

Gunungkidul BPBD Head Purwono said the agency has so far distributed 636,000 litres of clean water to various affected areas.

“That is only from the BPBD. Water deliveries are also being carried out by each sub-district government, but we have not yet received all the data,” he said. A kapanewon is an administrative level equivalent to a district in the Special Region of Yogyakarta.

According to Purwono, Tepus Sub-district is the area worst affected by the drought, followed by Rongkop Sub-district. In Tepus specifically, the BPBD has distributed 40 tanks of clean water and is still awaiting further proposals for the next round of distribution.

“We are still waiting for the proposal from Tepus,” he said.

He explained that the drought in Gunungkidul is influenced by the topography of the karst hills, which have very few surface springs. In addition, the PDAM’s service coverage in several remote areas has yet to meet communities’ daily water needs on a routine basis.

Meanwhile, the Head of the Social Affairs Office of the Tepus Sub-district Government, Sukisno, said the sub-district has distributed clean water assistance using its own budget to three villages — Purwodadi, Sidoharjo and Tepus — totalling 100 water tanks.

“In Purwodadi Village we have already delivered clean water,” he said.

He confirmed that residents of Duwet Hamlet, Purwodadi Village, have begun experiencing drought and are relying on thuk Kali Wonosari as their water source. However, the sub-district government has not yet been able to confirm whether the spring can last throughout the dry season.

According to Sukisno, the sub-district government is also ready to support efforts to preserve thuk Kali Wonosari.

“If the spring does indeed need to be revitalised, that could be done later,” said Sukisno.