Facing Climate Change, Minister Basuki Affirms Indonesia Still Needs Many Dams

PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono. (Photo: Theresia Agatha/VOI)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian government is known to have built 61 dams in the last 10 years, and in the future the construction will continue with building 50 new dams every 5 years.

Minister of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Basuki Hadimuljono said Indonesia needed dams to deal with climate change.

"Indonesia needs a lot more water storage to deal with extreme weather and climate change. There is no other choice to deal with floods and drought, except by adding more dams and reservoirs," Minister Basuki said in his official statement, quoted Monday, December 11.

Basuki said, Indonesia must continue to maintain intellectual exercise in building and managing dams.

"If we have been building dams of the same type, namely rockfill dams, in the future we need innovation so that dam technology can be better and more advanced," he said.

Meanwhile, Secretary of the Directorate General of Water Resources of the Ministry of PUPR Airlangga Mardjono added that there are five main issues that need mutual attention.

First, dams and adaptation to climate change, challenges for the construction of dams and embankments in the future, dams and embankments in the face of extreme weather, dam security against earthquakes, as well as increasing the role of dams and their reservoirs in supporting new energy and renewable energy.

"We invite all stakeholders, starting from the government, academics, industry, organizations and the wider community to jointly exchange ideas and collaborate," he said.