Jakarta - floods and relocation of Indonesia's capital to Borneo
A much bigger challenge will be the relocation of Indonesia's capital Jakarta, which was announced a year ago by authorities there. Struggling with steadily rising sea levels, Indonesia has experienced repeated floods in recent years, which have not spared its capital region either. Some of them have had catastrophic effects, with poorer neighborhoods most vulnerable.
In 2007, a flood took 70,000 homes and killed 80 people; torrential rains five years later caused the deaths of fifty city residents. The solution to the recurring problems is expected to be a $33 billion relocation of the capital to another Indonesian island, Borneo. The operation, set to begin next year, carries promises of improving living conditions for millions of people, but at the same time a great threat to Borneo's environment.
People walking on flooded streets in Jakarta, Indonesia, January 17, 2013.
© VOA Indonesian Service (Public Domain)
Deforestation associated with the construction of the new city may exacerbate processes that began back in the 1970s, which involved converting rainforest land into oil palm plantations. By 2015, more than forty thousand square kilometers of forest had been destroyed in this way. Borneo's deforestation has slowed in recent years as palm oil prices have fallen. But some environmentalists fear that the arrival of new residents on the island could threaten the remaining healthy forests.
As Indonesia's new capital, Borneo is expected to become home to about one and a half million new residents - mostly government employees and their families. Interestingly, it is assumed that most of the metropolis of nearly 10 million people will remain in the old Jakarta.
Skyscrapers in Jakarta along the CBD with Wisma 46 as the centerpiece
© Yohanes Budiyanto (CC BY 2.0)
Despite the government's assurances about the integrity of protected forests, doubts have been raised about the city's construction on peatlands, which could release significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the work. In turn, the required soil drainage may be associated with increased vulnerability to fires in the surrounding area. Similar concerns are also shared by local residents of areas earmarked for the development of the new capital.
on the next page:
Floating settlements - housing in times of rising sea levels
