Gearing Up for La Nina

KOMPAS/DIONISIUS REYNALDO TRIWIBOWO

The overflow of the Katingan River enters a settlement in Kasongan, Katingan Regency, Central Kalimantan, Wednesday (8/9/2021). At least 13 districts in Katingan Regency were inundated by floods due to extreme weather.

here is a more elaborate and technical explanation behind the La Nina weather phenomenon but, put simply, this phenomenon is associated with wet weather because of high rainfall intensity.

La Nina is the opposite phenomenon to El Nino, which is associated with drought. Although this phenomenon is familiar – taking two to seven years to arrive – many are increasingly worried about the extremities brought by this weather condition.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) secretary general Petteri Taalas said La Nina was predicted to return at the end of 2021, coinciding with the arrival of the rainy season across most parts of Indonesia. The last La Nina, however, occurred only recently between August 2020 and May 2021.

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In terms of local weather forecasts, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) announced that the rainy season was expected to arrive earlier this year. Rain intensity in several areas around the country has been recorded as higher than the normal average (Kompas, 13/9/2021).

The BMKG’s forecast is in line with the WMO’s, so there is no doubt that high rainfall will happen. Our job then, is to prepare ourselves as best we can by mitigating the potential impacts caused by the rainy season, amplified by the arrival of La Nina.

DOKUMEN BPBA ACEH

A road in the Isaq area, Central Aceh Regency, Aceh collapsed, Sunday (16/5/201). Natural disasters occur due to extreme weather and decreased environmental carrying capacity.

The WMO secretary general reminded us that climate change would also amplify the impact of naturally occurring events each season. Year after year, the weather feels more intense. When it is hot, it seems hotter. When it rains, it seems more torrential.

Even with La Nina, this phenomenon is not enough to help cool land temperatures, which are expected to heat up more than the annual average. As mid-September approaches, we are already hearing reports of flooding in several areas. On Saturday (11/9) night, a flood hit Klungkung, Bali, and another occurred in Central Kalimantan.

Preparation is required to face the already increasingly extreme weather conditions, which will soon by amplified by La Nina. As weather conditions get more extreme with every year, we must prepare with all we have got to face this hydrometeorological phenomenon.

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It will be regretful to see the dredging of rivers or excavations to inspect or enlarge culverts in urban areas taking place just before the arrival of the rainy season. Many warnings have come and gone and should have signaled the immediate need for flood and landslide mitigation action plans. Local administrations should be competing to protect their areas from anticipated hydrometeorological disasters.

Indonesia is determined to become a nation centered around learning and knowledge. Being able to evade hydrometeorological disasters is one way to show what we have learned from our past mistakes.

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.