On Tuesday (27 Aug), President Joko Widodo announced his government’s decision to relocate the Indonesian capital to an area straddling Penajam Paser Utara and Kutai Kartanegara districts in East Kalimantan, and refurnish it into “a smart city in the forest” upon having set aside 180,000 hectares of government land.
This multibillion-dollar move to replace Jakarta is reportedly sanctioned due to the capital being plagued by pollution and overcrowding, and is said to be slowly sinking into the sea.
Nonetheless, Greenpeace Indonesia, a non-government organisation that uses non-violent creative action to pave the way towards a greener and peaceful world, has several environmental and governance concerns with regards to the government’s decision as it will require the conversion of forests and land for urban development, which will certainly have an impact on the environment.
In a press release that was sent out on the same day as the President’s announcement, Greenpeace Indonesia expressed its concerns as the move will present a devastating effect to the environment and people.
“The plan to relocate our capital to East Kalimantan, if executed without prioritising environmental protection, risks creating fresh environmental problems in the new capital, just as Jakarta suffers from environmental crises today. Jakarta’s air is polluted not only by a poorly planned transportation sector but also from the many coal-fired power plants in the area around Jakarta. If Indonesia’s new capital city also relies on coal power as Jakarta does, then don’t expect the move to a new capital to bring a breath of fresh air,” said Leonard Simanjuntak, Country Director of Greenpeace Indonesia, in the release.
Mr Simanjuntak also hinted that “history will repeat itself especially if the government goes ahead and builds ‘mine-mouth’ coal-fired power plants” whereby the presence of these coal mines will not only warrant air pollution but also cause other environmental impacts such as deforestation and obstruction of clean water supply.
He went on to say, “The threat posed by the global climate crisis, combined with environmental mismanagement of Jakarta, should not be a reason to cut and run by moving the capital. But it must provide a wake up call and become a major consideration in Indonesia’s development strategy going forward.”
“The relocation of our capital will only displace environmental problems or even create new ones, if we do not take full stock of the unfolding climate crisis. A very strong government commitment is called for to ensure no excessive land conversion and additional deforestation takes place at the new capital city site,” he added.
As such, he suggested that the way for the government to achieve this ‘compact city’ concept is to “deploy electricity-based mass public transportation, with the city’s primary energy source being renewables, and with waste management geared towards a zero-waste city”.
He further asserted, “Only by planning with these in mind can a new capital city not exacerbate the current environmental and climate crisis.”
With regards to wildlife preservation and the safety of the people, Greenpeace noted its concerned that the proposed area of relocation and development is prone to forest fires, citing that there were as many as 3,487 fire hotspots in Kutai Kartanegara district during the 2015 fires crisis.
Additionally, Greenpeace highlighted that the development of the new capital must not impinge on protected areas or nature reserves because that would certainly cause additional deforestation and threaten endangered endemic species such as the Bornean orangutan.
“Environmental concerns must once again be underlined as a fundamental consideration in relocating the capital city. It is unfortunate that this process is being carried out in a hurry and without an adequate public consultation process. In democracies, open discussions to listen to the aspirations of the public, including ensuring the consent of local indigenous peoples, must be an integral part of important public decision-making. This must be an important note for President Jokowi,” concluded Leonard.
Subscribe
Login
0 Comments
