Shanties obstruct flood control plan

Shanties obstruct flood control plan

JAKARTA (JP): More than 5,000 shanties built along riverbanks
from North to South Jakarta are obstructing the city's flood
control program, officials of the Ministry of Public Works said.

Soeparmono, the ministry's director general of water resources
development, said yesterday this was the dilemma faced in flood
control projects.

"I am very concerned about this," Soeparmono said. "Each shack
has at least three inhabitants," he added.

The project is crucial in curbing floods, "but maybe the
municipality is also worried that if it removes thousands of
shanties, some 10,000 more people will come".

The directorate general and the municipality plan to meet this
week to coordinate the project, another official who requested
anonymity said.

Soeparmono said the shacks were in Muara Angke, North Jakarta
to Karet and South Jakarta.

Siswoko, head of the Ciliwung and Cisadane rivers improvement
projects, said that of the 5,615 homes, 4,500 are in North
Jakarta alone.

The officials said they had received Rp 21 billion to start
the project but this is only for construction. The funds do not
include removing shacks from riverbanks.

Soeparmono said the problem in Kampung Melayu, one of the
affected areas, is even more complex as the homes cannot be
categorized as illegal.

"We found residents had building permits and paid annual
property tax," he said.

Soeparmono urged the municipality and other local
administrations to step up supervision in their areas to prevent
building both along riverbanks and in water catchment areas.

He said authorities should also enforce a presidential decree
on guarding water catchment areas along the Ciliwung and Cisadane
rivers in the whole river basin area.

Following last year's floods, central government authorities
from the National Development Planning Board, the state
environment office and the Attorney General's Office have stated
their support for the local governments of Bogor and Cianjur,
Last year, uncontrolled development of villas and homes in the
mountain resort around Puncak were blamed as the main cause of
the floods which killed at least 30 people here.

However, Soeparmono said the middle part of the river basin
from Bogor to Ciputat still lacked enforcement.

Efforts by the Ministry of Public Works and other related
offices, he said, succeeded in reducing the city's 95 flood-prone
spots to 65 last year.

Enforcement is urgent, Soeparmono said, given an expected
acute water shortage in Greater Jakarta.

"I'm not only urging authorities in Greater Jakarta, but also
those in other areas in Java.

"A person needs at least 2,000 cubic meters of water a year to
enable him to eat enough rice and have a nutritious meal every
day," he said, adding that it excludes sanitation needs such as
bathing and washing.

"The supply of water here is barely enough for minimum needs,"
Soeparmono said.

He said the question must be raised as to how long development
must continue in Greater Jakarta and other areas in Java given
its limited resources.

"Currently, development in Greater Jakarta goes on as if it
has no limits. We must seriously question how we can spread
growth outside Jakarta, where people still crowd like insects to
a lamp," he said.

Soeparmono warned that water would be in short supply in
August or September.

Lakes, among water catchments areas here, "are in very poor
condition", he said.

Soeparmono also warned travelers that many areas along Java's
north coast are prone to floods, because many water catchment
areas have been developed into residential areas and office
space.

Problem areas from West to East Java include Indramayu, Tegal,
Pemalang, Kendal and areas further up the Bengawan Solo river, he
said.

"However we have 24-hour flood watch centers which will alarm
local authorities," Soeparmono said. (anr)