Dear Anies Baswedan! Jakarta Is Predicted To Sink In 10 Years, Immediately Ban Groundwater Pumping

Illustration (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - City planning observer from Trisakti University, Nirwono Joga, said that the Governor of DKI Jakarta must make a rule that prohibits pumping of ground water which causes land subsidence.

This is in response to US President Joe Biden's prediction that Jakarta will sink in the next 10 years.

"The DKI Provincial Government must immediately ensure the termination or prohibition of groundwater extraction (pumps) in 2025 or at the latest by 2030, to slow down land subsidence," said Nirwono when contacted, Friday, August 6.

Actually, Nirwono claimed to have heard the threat of Jakarta sinking being echoed since 1985, 1996, until the 2000s. Unfortunately, the development program in the capital city has exacerbated the impact of environmental damage.

Therefore, Nirwono views Anies as having to make a policy to ban groundwater extraction immediately. This is because 40 percent of the DKI area from the center to the north is below sea level.

According to him, the main cause of land subsidence is due to uncontrolled groundwater pumping, both in households, high-rise buildings, to industrial areas.

"This excessive extraction of groundwater is due to the inability of the local government to supply clean water through pipes to all areas of DKI," said Nirwono.

In addition, the soil layer from Central Jakarta to North Jakarta is currently getting softer. In addition, the burden of infrastructure and heavy vehicular traffic in the north accelerates land subsidence.

For information, Biden said that one of the impacts of climate change is sea level rise. He projects that if sea levels rise by just 2.5 feet or 7.6 cm, millions of people in the world will have to flee their homes.

If the projection is correct, then Indonesia will have to pay a heavy price by immediately moving the capital city of Jakarta. Because, Jakarta is the capital city that is most at risk of sinking in the next 20 years.

"What happens in Indonesia if the projections are correct that, in the next 10 years, they may have to move the capital because they will be underwater? That's important. It's a strategic question as well as an environmental question," Biden said in a speech at the Director's Office. US National Intelligence, last July 27.