The Story Of 3 Villages That Disappeared In Agam, West Sumatra Due To Abrasion

Padang Masang Village, Tanjungmutiara District, Agam Regency, West Sumatra/ANTARA

AGAM - Tanjungmutiara District, Agam Regency, West Sumatra, is the only sub-district in this regency that has a sea with a 43-kilometer coastline facing the Indian Ocean.

Tanjungmutiara sub-district has two of the four Nagari or traditional villages that are along the coastline and in general, the people live on the coast.

In general, the people along the coast work as fishermen, traders, artisans, micro, small and medium enterprises, gardeners, and other businesses.

Facing the Indian Ocean, the tidal waves are quite large plus there are no large islands that can block the tidal waves.

As a result, the tidal waves trigger coastal abrasion and then erode the land along the coastline.

This land erosion is caused by the absence of breakwaters installed along the coastline with a stretch of 2.5 kilometers, from Muaro Putih to Jorong Masang.

This condition causes coastal abrasion to occur almost every year since tens of years ago. As a result, the villages of Padang Subaliak, Padang Masang, and Muaro Putih were destroyed and turned into oceans.

Secretary of Kerapatan Adat Nagari (KAN) Tiku Lima Jorong, Agusmaidi, reported by ANTARA, Sunday, February 19, stated that the abrasion occurred dozens of years ago, which resulted in the residents' village turning into a sea.

The first village with the name Kampuang Padang Masang was where his parents were born and the area was depleted due to abrasion.

After that, the residents, including their parents' fathers, built houses in Padang Subaliak with a distance of about 1.5 meters from the shoreline, so that they were safer from waves.

Padang Subaliak is his hometown and a place where he played with his friends about 50 years ago.

However, the village was again hit by coastal erosion so in 2014 the village was abandoned by its residents to a new location about 500 meters from the beach.

At least, there are around 242 housing units, mosques, health centers, and other buildings damaged by abrasion in Padang Subaliak. Currently, only a few ruins of houses and mosques are left on the beach.

Under these conditions, one village is inhabited by one generation and it is the second generation.

Currently, the distance to the current settlement where their child was born is only about 400 meters from the shoreline and if this is not resolved, then the settlement will disappear again. Repeating the history of environmental disasters.

In addition, the land for oil palm plantations belonging to the Tiku Lima Jorong Village Cooperative (KUD), with an area of ​​around 100 hectares, has also been used up.

At that location, fishermen also find it difficult to find fish along the waters due to the many buildings and trees.

Need a breakwater

In 2016, along the 2-kilometer shoreline, breakwaters were installed from Jorong Muaro Paneh to Jorong Ujuang Laburan so that the area was safe from scouring tidal waves.

In Jorong Muaro Putih only five breakwaters have been installed, while in Jorong Masang there is not yet one so every year around 30-50 meters of land is eroded by tidal waves.

At least, around 2.5 kilometers of the coast, it is urgent to build a breakwater, so that residents' settlements are safe from tidal waves.

Secretary of Tiku Lima Jorong Traditional Nagari Density (KAN), Agusmaidi, stated that KAN and the Tiku Lima Jorong Nagari Government have frequently proposed the construction of a breakwater to the Agam Regency Government, the West Sumatra Provincial Government, and the Sumatra V River Basin Office.

The construction of the breakwater is often proposed during the musrenbang (development plan meetings) with the first priority. His party also submitted a proposal to the regent, and members of the West Sumatra DPRD and DPR RI.

But until now it hasn't been realized so people are afraid of that condition.

The Deputy Regent of Agam, Irwan Fikri, added that the Agam Regency Government had conducted a comprehensive data collection on the impact of the beach abrasion along the Tiku coastline.

The results of the data collection have been submitted to the West Sumatra Provincial Government and the Agam Regency Government has also written to the Head of the Sumatra V River Region Office.

However, the Agam Regency Government is still waiting for a follow-up from the Provincial Government and BWSS V. For further information, the Agam Regency Government will coordinate with the Provincial Government and BWSS V, so that abrasion is handled immediately.

In this way, residents' settlements can be saved from abrasion.

The Agam Regency Government continues to make efforts to propose to the Central Government to build a breakwater immediately in the near future.

Breakwaters are urgently needed to deal with tidal waves in the area so that the land along the coast which is prone to abrasion becomes safer, in the future.

2,350 families in abrasion-prone areas

The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) of Agam Regency, noted that as many as 2,350 families spread across Tanjungmutiara District live in areas prone to coastal abrasion disasters.

The secretary of BPBD Agam, Olkawendri, said that the figure was based on data collection conducted by the local BPBD a few months ago by sending a team to the field.

Data collected in the field through residents, Jorong officers, and Nagari officers have been sent to the West Sumatra BPBD.

The data collection was carried out after beach abrasion hit the area about 20 meters for one month.

The 2,350 families are scattered in Jorong Gasan Kaciak 105 families from 35 housing units, Jorong Banda Gadang 135 families from 45 housing units, and Jorong Pasia Tiku 987 families from 329 houses.

As for Jorong Pasia Paneh, there were 220 families from 170 houses, Jorong Labuhan recorded 150 families from 100 houses.

In addition, Jorong Muaro Putih recorded 550 families from 400 houses, Jorong Masang had one family from one house, and Jorong Ujuang Labuang 352 families from 250 houses.

As for the affected settlements, there are 1,330 houses spread over eight Jorong in Nagari Tiku Selatan and Tiku Lima Jorong.

Apart from settlements, there are also buildings affected by abrasion, namely five elementary school units, one kindergarten unit, one early education unit, one MTs unit, and one junior high school unit.

Then there are four auxiliary health centers, three Jorong offices, one unit UPT, seven bridges, 13 places of worship, and 11,500 meters of roads.

Given the real threat to the safety of residents, the construction of the breakwater should have been hastened.

This endeavor is also to save the village along with the residents' assets and public facilities that have been built with the people's money.