Who's responsible for the floods?
Who's responsible for the floods?
We have been debating the effects of development in Bogor, Puncak and Cianjur (Bopunjur) for several years and have yet to arrive at a solution.
In the meantime, developers have successfully carried out their activities in the area with local government support. One now finds bungalows sprouting up all around the area, which is supposed to be a conservation area serving to protect the city from floods.
A similar situation exists in Lembang, north of Bandung, and Ciater is likely to be the next target of greedy developers. Sooner or later this will threaten the city of Bandung. There might be even greater floods because Bandung is like a bowl surrounded by many mountains and hills.
The development of apartment buildings in Jakarta is not only excessive and expensive, but making Jakarta more vulnerable to flooding, which has been exacerbated by higher tides in the Java Sea.
Let's now look at the Cibubur area to the left of the toll road. Heading from Jakarta to Bogor one can predict that the area will soon be flooded with new buildings and housing. But in 1970 the area was declared to be a water catchment area for Jakarta. What's happened?
How about the toll road heading to the airport? The nearby creeks are shrinking because of the Kapuk waterfront project and the golf course, which contributed to the recent flooding of the toll road. Who should be held responsible?
All those development activities would not have been carried out if set concepts had been formulated. It is not only the fault of greedy developers but also of the local and central governments.
If we have a master plan, everybody must cling to it. The plan must be implemented under reliable supervision. More importantly, all involved parties must not be tempted by money from the developers or others wanting to deviate from the plans.
While I doubt the development ban in Bogor, Puncak and Cianjur will be effective, I hope the Indonesian people, government, developers and companies realize the seriousness of the situation and what effect it may have on future generations.
HW PIENANDORO
Bogor