Water Runs Dry

Water Runs Dry

January 14, 2012, 11:48 pm
Filed under: Nature-Call

THIS LITTLE GIRL was an evidence. She and all the mankind on her village had been suffered even they lived alongside the Mirah River. They have no more resources when water runs dry, and so do we.

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Due to Investment-Based on Natural Resources, Oil Palm Plantations and Agro-industry

DEVELOPMENT WHICH IS being promoted by the government certainly need a huge capital. Based on that the investment are invited. The owners of investment and then came closer to the government to negotiate and developed consensus. When the consent of both parties has been reached, then the owner immediately do the investments in that certain business areas.

Bisnis Indonesia Online said that Hartono Brothers (owners of Djarum), Susilo Wonowidjojo (Gudang Garam) and Eka Tjipta Widjaja (Sinarmas Group) are the top three richest people in Indonesia. They have businesses in agriculture and plantations. On fourth down to ten, five of which have businesses associated with the land, such as mining, agro-industry and forestry.

These situation lead to the conclusion that most of the owners of a successful investment has chosen their business closed to natural resources.

Oil Palm Plantations Threaten Sembuluh Lake in Central Kalimantan

The ecosystem of Sembuluh Lake has been damaged and suffered serious degradation due to various activities surrounding in its region, especially the opening of a massive oil palm plantation around since last 10 years ago. Nordin, Director of Save Our Borneo, was reported.

No less than eight Large Private Company or Perkebunan Besar Swasta (PBS) are direct contacted with the Sembuluh Lake, where the rivers that are in the PBS concession area also flows into Sembuluh Lake. They are PT. Agro Indomas, PT. Mustika Sembuluh, PT. Mega Ika Kansa, PT. Salonok Ladang Mas, PT. Hamparan Mas Sawit Bangun Persada, PT. Kerry Sawit Indonesia, PT. Rim Capital dan PT. Sawit Mas Nugraha Perdana.

In addition of rivers damaged by oil palm crushed by PBS, The two Palm Oil Mills had strongfull-indicated within discharge their waste directly into Sembuluh Lake through tributaries. Both Mills are belong to PT. Agro Indomas I in the upperstream area and PT. Agro Indomas II in Purun River. The Environment Agency of Central Kalimantan Province and some NGOs like Walhi Central Kalimantan and Save Our Borneo has sewers in the year 2010. That artificial canals has been bridging those mills to Rambania Gulf at Sembuluh Lake.

Not only threaten by waste, Sembuluh Lake also tampered within the planting of oil palm in the body of lake and rivers. This has been done by PT. Hamparan Mas Sawit Bangun Persada at Tabiku Persada Village, PT. Salonok Ladang Mas at Bajarau Village Sembuluh II and PT.Agro Indomas at Lampasa Village and Rangkang Bangkal Village.

Unfortunately, this hasn’t been a serious concern to be addressed by the local government, at Seruyan District. So the NGOs suspected that it has happened nullifying the cultivation of oil palm in the Sembuluh Lake.

Industrial Waste in the Sub-Way Seputih Watershed, Lampung.

This bad thing has happened in the Ruktibasuki Village, Rumbia, Central Lampung. The people of this community had been complained about pollution of industrial waste which came from cassava processing company, owned by PT Gunung Intan. Some residents have lung spots due to pollution that arising from such waste. On the other things, it also indicated the occurrence of groundwater contamination in the neighborhood.

The company also disposed wastes of cassava skin into the river which part of Way Seputih River basin. It certainly decreased quality of water in the watershed area and destroyed all ecosystem and life-stream.

The people has expressed the occurrence of pollution from tapioca processing companies to the local parliament and government of Lampung Tengah. But unfortunately, there are no decisive action related to those pollutions.

So, the government must crack down on companies who disposed of industrial waste into the watershed. They also should actually implement the quality standards for waste management companies in order to avoid severe damage arising from all industrial waste. There are many industries who produced sugar, ethanol, tapioca and animal feed in Central Lampung regency is in the area of Way Seputih watershed.

Let’s imagine that watershed just like a bowl. When a huge vicarious pollution came to watershed area, thus the whole wastewater will entered into the river and pollute the whole ‘bowl’.

The Watershed Conditions of Serayu.

Two NGOs named Kompleet and Telapak identified some ecosystem that have been degraded on the upstream of Serayu River. There are many potato’s farms had damaged most of the region. Thus, it reduced the extent of the catchment area.

While in the middle the Serayu River water across the agricultural areas. These areas are extensively food estate. In terms of this situation, the quality of river-water has prone polluted by many chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Not only that. All pollutions also came from the inorganic form of plastic waste disposal.

Fortunately, this river as it crosses the benefits in Banjarnegara district. The people use this water to planted snake-skin fruits called salak pondoh, the most favorable one. The Salak plantation located under the trees like sengon or albasia, as well as in Perhutani areas throughout collaboration on forest management based on communities.

Infrastructure Development.

Most of the development in this country has similarly to the procurement of goods in physical form. That forms mean that something could be visible in the eyes. All forms contain established specific intent for the creation of efficiency. Unfortunately these efficients also conquering the nature and wild life. Then, it is often fruitful to conquer the natural disaster for mankind.

Some experts in water planning governance had done. They invited many physical construction experts to developed forms in water bodies. Two of them are the Sabo-damss and Reservoir.

Sabo-dams on the slopes of Mount Merapi

Suara Merdeka, a local newspaper, said there are 67 sabo-dams on 12 rivers that disgorge at Mount Merapi were damaged by the floods of cold lava from November 2010 until May 2011. The worst damage was in the Kali Putih and Kali Gendol Sabo-dam.

Based on the record of Central River Region Serayu Opak (BBWSSO), all bad sabo dams are located on the rivers as lava path. The rivers are the Kali Putih, Pabelan, Senowo, Krasak and Bebeng in Magelang District, and Kali Gendol, and Opak in Sleman, Yogyakarta.

When some heavy rains came in early 2012, said Solopos, a lot of lava had flowed in Kali Gendol stream. The flow of material had large enough to brought very large rocks which making all Sabo-dam bridges alongside Kali Gendol was closed. At that time, fortunately the stream wasn’t overflowing to the sides of the river and packed residential area. But Samsul Bakri, Head of Cangkringan Sub-district who reviewed to that field, suggested that the Sabo-dam’s embankments eroded and many of them were breaking bit by bit.

That situation has similar to Agralno’s experience as a local secretary at the village who lived close to the time when the eruption of Mount Merapi hit Kali Gendol in early November 2010. He said that the Sabo-dams inhibit the flow of lava. Thus all lava consequently left to right instead of the river overflowed and damaged many residential areas. Therefore, he and all members of the community demanded to the government to turned down all Sabo-dam and restore the natural landscape Kali Gendol appropriate. He believed if Kali Gendol went back to their natural state, so it would be able to accommodate the entire flow of lava which came from Mount Merapi.

Actually, BBWSO had 279 master plan of all Sabo-dams across the rivers that disgorge at Mount Merapi since in the year of 2000. All Sabo-dams construction will be done in stages. However, due to the influence of the eruption of Merapi and cold lava flood, thus all Sabo-dams construction disturbed, and it only awakened 204.

BBWSO argued that the Sabo-dams serve to hold the material and not to directly down into the residential area. If the lava straight down with no one to hinder, it would have destroyed in unusually large. The lava also carried huge materials ranging mix of water, mud, sand and large boulders. The higher slope of the river, the stronger currents could happened. So, BBWSO said that It has to developed the Sabo-dams to sloping riverbed.

Thus because of Sabo-dams, the people and the management of the river has no agree.

Tinalah Reservoir

As Seputar Indonesia said that thousands of residents around the Tinalah River, Samiglauh, Kulonprogo went to the parliament in early January 2012. They refused Tinalah Dam which listed in the draft regulation of Regional Spatial Plan. According to that plan, the reservoir will be constructed in a way to stem Tinalah River.

Residents had fret. If the dam would be built then they lost their home and livelihoods. At least there are over 10,000 people or 4,000 households lived around the river flow.

Dr.-Ing Ir Agus Maryono, an eco-hydraulic experts from Master of Science Engineering, University of Gadjah Mada, argued that all constructions of in the river would be (i) changed the balance of sedimentation, (ii) changed the elevation of the groundwater, (iii) reduced water discharge of the rivers, (iv) increased pool water area, (v) reduced natural river dynamics and (vi) broke the life cycle of certain fish species.

When a river got dammed, it will change ecosystem, from an open to semi-open or closed one. It means that there is a flow termination of the river ecosystem drastically, from the open ecosystems as upstream to downstream into separate ecosystems.

Heri Wibowo, one of the leaders of Wana Lestari Menoreh Cooperative, Kulonprogo said that the government intends to get of irrigation water reservoirs within a hedge program to Tinalah River. Unfortunately, there are no assessments that should be done. That assessments contain in terms of ecological water requirements for downstream and upstream area.

Then all polemic of this reservoir is finally over on 3 January 2012. Kedaulatan Rakyat reported that dr H Hasto Wardoyo as a Regent of Kulonprogo expressed the opinion on the some committees and party fractions at parliament who arranged that draft. He agreed to delete the word, sentence or clause of the development plan of Tinalah reservoir on draft regulation of Regional Spatial Plan.

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