Transforming River into Clean and Green Environment

Changes in river conditions in Denpasar are obviously indispensable from the role of local residents who care about rivers. They come up with environmental initiatives to clean up their respective riverbank areas.

KOMPAS/COKORDA YUDISTIRA

A number of residents are active in Tukad Bindu in Kesiman Village, East Denpasar District, Denpasar City, Sunday (31/7/2022). Tukad Bindu's transformation from dirty to clean has become an inspiration for residents to clean and maintain the cleanliness of rivers in Denpasar City.

Dismayed by the filthy conditions of the rivers and irrigation canals, residents in Denpasar have launched a river cleanup movement. The environment around the tukad (riverbanks) has now improved to become more comfortable to live in, with the waterways now almost free from litter.

Environmental themed murals adorn the Supiori roadside at Dauh Puri Kauh village in Denpasar, Bali. They carry messages, such as, “Take care of nature, and nature will take care of us”, “Take care of plants and animals” and “Let's do the 3R [reuse, reduce, recycle]”. Those murals have been installed in the vicinity of an aesthetically rejuvenated park at the Tukad Baru, or more commonly as Tukad Beling, irrigation canal.

"We put up the murals during the [peak of] Covid-19 period in 2021. We have rejuvenated the park to make the cleaned-up Tukad Beling more appealing," Sebelanga hamlet head I Made Sutawan (38) said.

With its irrigation system, Tukad Beling is the main source of water for the surrounding rice fields. Before 2019, this small river used to be neglected, filled with garbage and sewage from household activity. The garbage that collected downstream amounted to around five cubic meters every two days.

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In mid-2019, young villagers initiated a clean-up of the river as part of preparations for a fishing competition to mark Indonesia’s independence day. "We are happy that Tukad Beling was cleaned up. We also participated [in the initiative]," said Made Kawi (49), a resident of Pekandelan hamlet, Pemecutan Kelod village, West Denpasar.

Sutawan and other residents set up nets at several points along the stream to deter people from making it a dumping ground for garbage or waste. They also released seeds of red tilapia, black tilapia and catfish to the river.

Pots with water jasmine (Echinodorus palaefolius) were placed in the middle of the river. To embellish the environment as well as providing a crossing facilitation for the residents, a bamboo bridge was also built across the river.

We are happy that Tukad Beling was cleaned up.

"As the river was becoming cleaner and there were more fish, we stopped ourselves from going on with the fishing competition for the 17 August celebration, because we didn't want to damage the river," Sutawan said.

Tukad Beling, which now looks clean, more organized and enchanting, has attracted the attention of both residents and passers-by. As it is increasingly popular, many people come to make it the backdrop for their photos.

City icon

The residents’ Tukad Beling initiative has received attention from the government. In November 2021, Denpasar Mayor I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara, along with Badung 1611 Military Command (Kodim) then-chief Col. (Inf) Made Alit Yudana and environmental care community members in Denpasar made a visit to Tukad Beling in a gathering marked with fish seed sowing, taking place at Tukad Beling as well as at Tukad Wang Bige in Pemogan, South Denpasar.

The mayor showed his support for the river clean-up movements in Tukad Beling and Tukad Wang Bige. He was very appreciative of the people who had taken care of the environment.

KOMPAS/COKORDA YUDISTIRA

Tukad Beling in Banjar Sebelanga, Dauh Puri Kauh Village, West Denpasar District, Denpasar City, Sunday (31/7/2022), looks clean and tidy. Local residents clean Tukad Beling and beautify it with a garden.

The Denpasar municipality also includes Tukad Badung, which flows by Badung Market and Kumbasari Market before becoming an irrigation source for the rice fields in Panjer and Sanur. Tukad Badung is known for its Korea Park after undergoing layout revitalization.

The park is equipped with benches and a paved path that allows residents to walk along the riverbank and it is decorated with colorful lights. The area is said to look like the landscape by Cheonggyecheon River in Seoul.

Tukad Badung revitalization began in 2017 during the leadership of Denpasar’s former mayor Ida Bagus Rai Dharmawijaya Mantra.

With Tukad Badung being the city’s iconic park, I Wayan Sugiarta (20) and his friends have planned to make the Tukad Badung area a location for video recording. When visited at Sewaka Dharma City Park at Dauh Puri Kaja, North Denpasar district, on Tuesday (26/7/2022), Sugiarta, helped by three others, was working on a short video for a public service advertisement project.

“Tukad Badung with its Korea Park makes a fitting backdrop. We plan to take pictures near the Tukad Badung bridge,” he said.

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River revitalization has also been carried out on Tukad Bindu in East Denpasar district. With its irrigation canal having been reworked, Tukad Bindu has transformed from a dirty river into one that can bring smiles. At Kesiman village, a rejuvenated park has become an attraction for both locals and outsiders.

Thanks to the revitalization program, Tukad Bindu has helped Denpasar municipality improve its position from 99 to 45 in the Public Service Innovation Competition in 2019, organized by the Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry. The Denpasar administration has carried out the municipality’s innovative environmental promotion under the tagline Senyum Melia di Tubin, which is an abbreviation of sungai elok nyaman untuk masyarakat dengan menjaga lingkungan dan alam di Tukad Bindu (environmental and natural preservation of Tukad Bindu makes a beautiful and useful river for the community)

Green-care community

Changes in river conditions in Denpasar are obviously indispensable from the role of local residents and community members who care about rivers. They come up with environmental initiatives to clean up their respective riverbank areas.

Tukad Bindu Foundation chairman Ida Bagus Made Ary Manik (48) expressed his pride that the community initiatives, which had transformed the "face" of Tukad Bindu, had also encouraged more environmental movements in other places.

But Nyoman Sukma Arida, an academic and deputy dean for academic affairs and planning at the tourism school of Udayana University, believes river revitalization programs have yet to be carried out thoroughly. She lamented the fact that people still viewed the river as the backyard of their houses.

"As the backyard, the river is prone to being used as a dumping ground for garbage and waste," she said.

She urged the public to build awareness about river cleanliness for the benefit of the community, saying that a river with clean riverbank parks would become a socializing space for residents.

"Urban residents generally lack public spaces that serve as social and recreational places for local residents," said Sukma Arida.

This article was translated by Musthofid.