Indonesia: Walhi opposes planned construction of Jakarta giant seawall

Antara 24 Oct 14;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi) has opposed the planned construction of giant seawall in Muara Angke, North Jakarta, citing it will destroy the environment and render thousands of fishermen jobless.

"Our stand is based on the result of our investigation into the planned construction of the mega project," executive director of Walhis Jakarta chapter Puput TD Putra said here on Friday.

The coastal reclamation that will be carried out to facilitate the construction of the seawall will destroy the environment and eliminate the fishermens historic track in Muara Angke, he observed.

"This is a serious problem that the government must consider," he added.

Puput revealed that Walhi and several fishermen groups will stage a rally in Muara Angke to oppose the project that is expected to cost Rp500 trillion.

"If the government builds a dam or anything else, it must also consider ecological and environmental conservation. And it should not view it merely from a projects aspect," he remarked.

The construction of the project started on October 9. The 33-kilometer-long seawall will extend from the Jakarta-West Java border to the Jakarta-Banten border.

Jakarta is currently sinking by an average of 7.5 centimeters a year. So, the giant seawall is expected to protect the capital city from floods.(*)

Jakarta Great Sea Wall to have serious waste impact: Walhi
Antara 28 Oct 14;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi) has argued that the Jakarta Great Sea Wall (JGSW) will hold wastes from the rivers flowing to the sea in great volumes

"We do not need to explain the marine life that could survive such as mangroves or whether fishermen still can catch fish," said Walhis External Affairs Deputy Director Zaenal Muttaqin here.

When the JGSW is built, said Zaenal, the flow of sea water and wastes from factories along the coast will gather around the embankment.

"Wastes will come from 13 polluted rivers and other factories that dump waste into rivers in Jakarta," he said.

Walhi will consistently reject the JGSW development because of environmental reasons.

"In addition to the damage, the negative impact in the field will also be experienced by people living in the coastal areas," said Executive Director Walhi Puput TD Putra in Jakarta.

According to Puput, the Socialization of JGSW construction project is not openly and intensely carried out by the Government of Jakarta.

"This project seemed to be not open to the public. The next thing I knew there was a plan to develop the project," he said.

He said that the JGSW is only able to reduce flooding by eight percent. In essence coastal communities do not benefit from the project," he said.

Walhi plans to conduct a study related to the development of JGSW. "We will conduct a study related to the JGSW at the end of this month and hold a discussion with experts," said Puput.

(Reported by Roberto Calvinantya Basuki/Uu.A051/A014)