Low tide time is not a reference for the success of Jakarta flood control

The Jakarta flood receding time of less than six hours is not an indicator of success because residents' activities are disrupted.

KOMPAS/FAKHRI FADLURROHMAN

Residents carry luggage while crossing flood waters in Kampung Melayu Village, Jatinegara District, East Jakarta, Friday (15/03/2024).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Floods that hit Jakarta after heavy rain, one of which was caused by overflowing river water, indicates that the handling was not optimal. The DKI Jakarta DPRD highlighted that a flood receding time of less than six hours is not an indicator of successful handling because residents' activities are disrupted, which in turn affects the economy.

Heavy rain since Sunday (24/3/2024) until Monday (25/3/2024) caused the Ciliwung River to overflow. As many as 30 neighborhood units (RT) were flooded with water ranging from 30 centimeters to 2 meters high. Previously, on Friday (22/3/2024), floods hit 55 RT and 30 road sections after heavy rain fell in the early hours. The flood then receded, leaving water in only nine RT on Saturday morning.

D member of the Jakarta Regional People's Representative Council (DPRD), Justin Adrian, stated that a flood receding in less than six hours is not an indicator of successful flood control. Floods in residential areas and streets harm residents and road users, as well as disrupt various urban activities.

"Ebb time is not an indicator. "Floods damage property and vehicles for which taxes are collected every year," said Justin, Thursday (28/3/2024).

Justin has requested that flood control efforts be undertaken simultaneously for more optimal results. This is based on the normalization of rivers or waterways, which has not been achieved according to its target.

Also read: Jakarta Adds 5 Polders, Revitalizes 2 Pumps, and Builds 8 Reservoirs

Previously, Vice Chairman of Commission D of the Jakarta Legislative Council, Nova Harivan Paloh, also raised concerns about the stalled normalization of the Ciliwung River due to unfinished land acquisition until now. Therefore, the local government must take the flood control program more seriously.

"Do not play around with flood issues. Focus. Prepare everything so that it can be controlled. The 24-hour flood in Tegal Alur has disrupted the activities and daily lives of residents," said Nova.

KOMPAS/AGUS SUSANTO

Residents are checking the condition of the Ciliwung River around their homes, which have been protected with sandbags in Kampung Melayu, Jatinegara, East Jakarta, on Monday (11/3/2024).

Be careful

Since 1922, a Dutch engineer named Herman van Breen had already warned to be cautious in organizing the development of Jakarta city. With an area of 650 square kilometers or 65,000 hectares, the land height of Jakarta is at 0 to 10 meters above sea level from point 0 in Tanjung Priok and 5 to 50 meters above sea level from the Banjir Canal to the southern border of Jakarta.

A lecturer at the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Indonesia, Rudy P Tambunan, said that Jakarta is a flat area and most of the area is submerged land or below sea level. That is why Herman van Breen in 1922 reminded the Dutch East Indies government to be careful in managing city development.

"The central and northern parts (of Jakarta) were widened using a polder approach," said Rudy when contacted.

Van Breen's warning began to be taken seriously after independence. In 1959, Jakarta improved its city planning through the Djakarta Outline Plan or preliminary plan.

Also read: Ciliwung River Overflows, Several Areas in Jakarta Flood Up to 2 Meters

Rudy explained that after Governor Ali Sadikin's service, planning continued with the Jakarta Master Plan from 1965-1985. This plan described how to handle water management and transportation in Jakarta. One of them is that Jakarta could be relieved from waterlogging and floods if equipped with a polder system.

”Jakarta uses a moderate approach with a drainage design for moderate rainfall estimates (50-100 mm per day). "Above that, a polder must be built to accommodate water," said Rudy.

Don't mess around with flooding problems. Focus. Prepare everything so that it is under control.

Rudy considers the example of a good polder to be in Pantai Indah Kapuk because it was built before the area became residential. Its design took into account the number of houses and buildings, resulting in a drainage pattern of four zones: north-east, north-west, south-east, and south-west.

Apart from that, underground drainage (subsurface drainage) or drainage which functions to channel surface runoff water through media below the ground surface so that the water continues to flow to the polder and is pumped to the Cengkareng Drain.

"Other (areas) can't do that because houses have already been built," said Rudy.

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

Heavy equipment is operated to dredge mud at the bottom of the Ciliwung River which separates the Jatinegara area from Tebet, Jakarta, Thursday (4/1/2023).

The issue of this developed area is inseparable from development plans. Results from studies with the Netherlands, Japan, and other countries have not been well implemented in the field. Meanwhile, population migration continues to increase and the government cannot provide development land for the people's housing.

"In the end, people built their own projects so that new problems emerged that were not in accordance with the spatial plan," said Rudy.

The inventory of land ownership, usage, and utilization (P4T) has not been fulfilled due to these problems. Unfortunately, neighboring regions such as Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi are experiencing similar issues.

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According to Rudy, the problem becomes more complicated because the different regions do not collaborate well with each other. Jakarta is building in its own way, as are Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi. As a result, what is formed is a conurbation, not a megalopolis.

Conurbation is a large area consisting of several cities/towns that tend to merge with each other through transportation networks or areas where several cities come together.

"We are trying to address this problem so that Jabodetabek's spatial planning becomes integrated," said Rudy.