Build Embung Multipurpose Natuna Sea Island, PUPR: Fulfill The Needs Of Citizens And Fishermen

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) stated that the Maritime Island Multipurpose Embung in Natuna Regency, has been operating to assist the community in providing raw water.

"The role of reservoirs is very important for the residents of Natuna Regency. There is a Multipurpose Embung on Laut Island that does not only meet the raw water needs of households, as well as the water needs of fishermen and ships that stop by," said Head of the Sumatra IV River Basin Center (BWS) Daniel in a statement in Jakarta, Sunday, October 13, quoted by Antara.

The Directorate General of Water Resources (Ditjen SDA) of the Ministry of PUPR continues to build rainwater reservoirs, one of which is in Pulau Laut District, Natuna Regency, Riau Islands Province.

The Multipurpose Embung of Laut Island is one of 22 reservoirs built by the Directorate General of Natural Resources through the Sumatra IV River Basin Center (BWS) in the Riau Islands.

"We manage eight reservoirs in Natuna Regency, three of which have a large capacity, but the utilization is not optimal," said Daniel.

He said that the reservoir in Natuna Regency has a capacity of 115 liters/second, equivalent to 41.78 percent of the capacity that has been built. If all the capacity is utilized, the water demand in 2024 of 142 liters/second can be met by 80.98 percent.

Daniel said the role of reservoirs is very important for the residents of Natuna Regency, one of which is the Multipurpose reservoir of Laut Island which does not only meet the raw water needs of households and the water needs of fishermen and stop-off ships.

In addition, there is a Serasan Embung which was built to meet the raw water supply of permanent residential residents (huntap) who were affected by landslides in 2023.

BWS Sumatra IV also handles 117 watersheds (DAS) in five districts and two cities with an area of 451 km2. The land area handled is only 1.9 percent and the rest is territorial waters. In this area, there are 2,408 islands, of which almost 2,000 are uninhabited.

"Our challenge is that the watershed is relatively short, so it is difficult to find a raw water source because there is no big river, so we can only rely on rainwater," said Daniel.

In order to increase the supply of raw water in Batam, Bintan, and Karimun, BWS Sumatra IV plans to build estuari dam in Tanjung Pinang and Teluk Bintan. It is estimated that these two infrastructures can meet 80 percent of the water needs in the region.

Several estuaries are already in planning. Daniel hopes that the existence of the infrastructure can be a source of raw water allocation.

"This opportunity is also possible to be carried out in Anambas Regency to support the water needs of international ships that often sail in these waters," he said.

Matrani, a local religious figure, said that the water from the reservoir was used for worship in three mosques and two surau.

He said that during the six months of the 2024 dry season, this reservoir had never dried up.

"We are grateful for the reservoir because it is very helpful compared to having to take water from the well," said Matrani.

He emphasized that people also often use water from the Sea Island Multipurpose Embung to carry out the safety tradition on the 7-9 Safar to avoid disaster.

Surya Arma, a traditional figure on Laut Island, said that the people of Laut Island Subdistrict were helped by the existence of the Sembung Sebaguna on Laut Island.

The reason is, before there was a reservoir in 2019, they had to go back and forth to take water to perigi with a distance of 500 meters to carry out the ritual.

"Now it's just a matter of turning the tap at home and the water is already available. The existence of the reservoir makes our work lighter," said Surya.

The Multipurpose Embung of Laut Island was built in 2017 on an area of 8 hectares. Currently, the reservoir water discharge reaches 5 liters/second and can serve the water needs of two villages, namely Kadur Village and Air Payang Village.

Meanwhile, Director of Perumda Air Drinking Tirta Nusa Natuna Zaharuddin said that before the reservoir, the supply of raw water in Natuna Regency was alarming, especially during the dry season.

Therefore, the community felt helped when the government realized the construction of reservoirs.

"We have experienced drought and scarcity of clean water after two weeks of the dry season. Residents only rely on water sourced from the mountains, but it is not sufficient," said Zaharuddin.

The sub-district head of Laut Island, Bambang Erawan, said that water from the reservoir was used for household needs, offices, health centers, sub-district offices, Polsek, and Koramil posts.

"Currently, water is more accessible because it is directly channeled to homes without the need for an electricity pump, it is enough to pay for use per cubic meter," said Bambang.

Not only that, but the reservoir area is also a tourist location that is of interest to residents. In addition, there is a prospect of using raw water because many fishing vessels and guard boats cross the waters of Laut Island.

"About 300-400 ships dock every year and all of them need water," said Bambang.

This is the potential for local revenue (PAD) from PDAM. Therefore, the local government is pushing for an increase in the debut of water distillation and pipeline to ports.

"At least, a water discharge of 10-15 liters/second is needed to meet the needs of households, offices, and fishing boats. The District of Laut Island also donated 55 hectares of land for further reservoir development," said Bambang.