Indonesia Announces Multi-Billion Dollar Plan To Save Jakarta From Sinking
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Rising sea levels are a growing worry for many coastal cities around the world. While all are expected to be impacted, some like Indonesia's capital Jakarta, are more vulnerable. Located in the northwest coast of the Java Sea, Southeast Asia's most populous city lies on a low flat basin at the mouth of the Ciliwung River on the Jakarta Bay. Though its average elevation is 8-meters (26 feet), 40% of the city lies below sea level and is sinking by as much as six inches, annually. Experts speculate that if this pace continues, much of northern Jakarta will be underwater by 2030.
The problem is exacerbated by the proliferation of boreholes that are being constructed to extract drinking water from underground. This has caused the soft clay delta soil to compact in certain areas of the city and help accelerate its sinking. If that is not bad enough, the flooding triggered by the overflowing Ciliwung and the smaller Pesanggrahan and Sunter rivers during the monsoon season, forces tens of thousands of shanty dwellers out of their homes annually.
While these issues have been known for some time, a 2007 flood that breached the city's existing sea wall for the first time brought about a new sense of urgency. After many years of planning and deliberation, in October 2014, Indonesian officials announced a multi-billion dollar project that they believe will save the city from disappearing.
The first priority will be to strengthen the existing sea wall around the northern part of the city. However, since it was constructed to withstand much lower water levels, this will provide the area's four million inhabitants only a temporary respite against the rising seas. The permanent solution is a more ambitious, multi-decade project, that entails building a 21-mile long wall and 17 artificial islands that are designed to shield the city from the rising sea levels. In addition to protecting Jakarta, the islands will also have housing and office space for up to a million people, a big help for the overcrowded city of nine million residents.
Also included in the plans is a massive reservoir that will be situated between the islands and the sea wall to absorb the runoff water from the rivers during the monsoon season and put an end to the annual flooding. Massive infrastructure upgrades like new pipes for drinking water, will alleviate the need for boreholes and prevent the ground from collapsing further.
Though the plan sounds perfect on paper, there are many hurdles that need to be overcome before it becomes a reality. The biggest issue of course is whether the country can afford the cost, which is expected to be about $40 billion USD over 20 years. Then there is the logistical challenge of building infrastructure in a densely populated city like Jakarta, given that relocation of residents could be extremely expensive and also, controversial. Even if these issues can be solved, there is still the technical challenge of gathering the large amount of soil that will be required to build the islands. Experts believe that it may be a hard feat to pull off even if the project engineers can get access to all the dredging vessels in the world.
Whether the giant wall and the islands, that will form the shape of a Garuda – the mythical bird that is Indonesia’s national symbol - will ever be built, remains to be seen. But the fact that the government has even come up with a plan is commendable, given that officials in other vulnerable cities like Bangkok, Dhaka and Mumbai, have not even begun to address the issue.
Resources: thenational.ae.com,fastcoexist.com
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287 Comments
deehamiltonover 8 yearsTHUNDER AND CAVS Jakarta vulnerable is sinking because its above sea level 6 inches high. why spurred government to take action is that he government feels bad. what are some of the hurdles thy face Is that they have a lot of stuff that needs fixng
brett_gnetover 8 years1---- They are vulnerable to sinking because sea levels are rising and the subsidence is lowering annually. 2---- strengthen the existing sea wall around the northern part of the city. 3--- They don't know if they can afford it all. Also there are 17 artificial islands that are designed to shield the city from the rising sea levels.
breanna2021over 8 years1) Jakarta is vulnerable to sinking because it lies on a low flat basin at the mouth of the Ciliwung River on the Jakarta Bay. Its factors are the tons of flooding and that 40% of the city lies below sea level and is sinking by as much as six inches, annually. 2) A flood that happened caught governments attention. The existing seawall was breached. Their plan was to strengthen the existing wall to Jakarta. 3) Some of the hurdles they face are whether or not the government can afford this cost. They will need lots of things like pipes and such that can be very pricey. The author is impressed because he didn't think the government was actually going to pitch in an help.
rubikcubemasterover 8 yearsto hopefully save Jakarta from sinking
maddies446over 8 years1. Jakarta is vulnerable to sinking because of its rising sea level and the city lies on a low flat basin. 2. The government spurred to take action because they want to save the city from drowning and their plan is to first strengthen the existing sea wall. 3. Some of the hurtles they will face is getting the money and the relocation of residents. Critical thinking challenge The biggest hurtle they will face is the money because it is around 4 billion dollors and they have to move the residents. - Madelyn Swanson
belle_zinnover 8 yearsZinn: 1.Jakarta is vulnerable to sinking because the city lies on a low flat basin at the mouth of a river. Other factors that help the issue is the rising of sea levels and flooding. 2. A flood that happened in 2007 that breached the existing seawall caught the governments attention and they decided they needed to take action. Their first part of their plan is to strengthen the existing wall to Jakarta. 3. The biggest hurdle they face is whether or not they can afford the cost. The author is impressed that the government joined in to help with the problem.
whynot_jessicaover 8 years1. the other countries around it are making it sink. 2.they want people to listen to them but they don't want to listen to others. 3.they want to run a country but they don't want to take care of it- rubikcubemasterover 8 yearsbecause of sea levels growing expediently
girl_sansover 8 yearsMarcum, Paige #1. The reason that Jakarta is vulnerable to sinking is that the city was built on low flat basin at the mouth of the Ciliwong River on Jakarta Bay. The other factors helping the issue is that 40% of the city lies below sea level and is sinking about six inches annually. #2. The city is slowly sinking which caused the government to act and think of a solution. They came up with strengthening the existing sea wall around the northern part of the city. Then the government would build 21-mile long wall and 17 artificial islands that would shield the city from rising sea levels. The islands would also have housing and office space for up to a million people. #3. Some hurdles that the government would face with the plan is that it would cost a lot of money. Also it would be to find the right amount of soil needed to make the 17 artificial islands.
epicrhinoover 8 yearsJacob-Jakarta is vulnerable to sinking because there is no way to protect it. And the wall thats being built is not yet complete. Other factors increasing the vulnerability are the rising sea level and the decreasing subsidence. 2. The goverment started to take action when they noticed the sea level was rising. And their plan to prevent this is to build a wall and various islands to stop massive flooding. 3. Some hurdles they face are the decreasing subsidence, rising sea shore, and the wall thats suppose to prevent flooding is not complete yet. And the author is impressed with their goverment because the money they spend is mainly focused on stopping the flooding.
