A Long Road to Restoring Citarum

People around Citarum River did not sit idle. While waiting for a government solution, they actively carried out activities.

Kompas/Tatang Mulyana Sinaga

A local resident hunts on Friday (8/12) for reusable plastic waste in the Cikapundung River, a tributary of the Citarum River along the border of the Bojongsoang and Dayeuhkolot districts in Bandung regency, West Java.

For residents of Bandung regency, the rainy season is a test. For decades, thousands of residents around Citarum River and its tributaries have suffered amid flooding caused by piling garbage, sedimentation and land transformation.

On Friday (8/12), the Cikapundung River, a tributary of Citarum River, below the Cijagra Bridge, Bandung regency, West Java, made headlines. Piles of garbage were seen on the side of the 18-meter-long bridge.

The piles of garbage totaled 180 square meters with a depth of 1 meter under the water’s surface. There was Styrofoam, logs and branches, long benches and mattresses.

“The garbage kept coming. The plan to restore the river has never been realized,” said Yahya, 65, while picking up plastic bottles from the river. He suggested that most of the garbage came from the residents of Bandung city and West Bandung, located in the upstream of the Cikapundung River. Yet, he did not deny local residents also contributed to the piling trash.

His suggestion was supported by data from the Bandung City Sanitation Agency, which stated that the garbage output was 1,500-1,600 tons per day. However, only around 1,100-1,200 tons of it was transported to garbage dumpsites. Around 150-250 tons of garbage was recycled into energy such as gas, electricity and fertilizer. However, around 250 tons of garbage was piled at unofficial dumpsites or thrown into Cikapundung.

Consequently, the piles of garbage blocked the river stream and triggered flooding in the districts of Baleendah, Bojongsoang and Dayeuhkolot. In November, a 1.5 meter-high flood submerged around 1,500 houses in the lowest area of Bandung. Thousand of people were evacuated.

West Java Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency head Dicky Saromi said the piles of garbage made the capacity of the river decreased. The garbage that blocked the water stream also made the flood longer to subside. “Along with sedimentation due to land transformation, the garbage easily triggered the flood,” he said. Quoting 2016 data from the Citarum Management Office, the amount of critical land along the stream of Citarum was vast, about 26,022 hectares.

Such a situation triggered erosion along Citarum at 592.11 tons per hectare per year and contributed land sedimentation and mud to Citarum of 7.9 million tons per year. Massive farmland, which is economically unfriendly, and residential areas on the riverbank are some of the causes.

Several works were carried out. Hundreds billions of rupiah was spent. Some ministries and state agencies were involved in restoring Citarum. Yet, Citarum remains the same, becoming the target of bullies and was dubbed the filthiest river in the world. Flooding is common.

In the past four years, the West Java provincial administration has carried out a program called “Citarum Bestari”. In 2016/2017, the province allocated Rp 120 billion for the program. As many as 227 villages along Citarum stream were educated. Seeing the Cijagra and annual floods, however, it appeared the program required better execution.

To improve the program, the province carried out joint works. The West Java administration and Kodam III/Siliwangi Military Command and other institutions launched a new chapter of the Citarum restoration project called “Bring back the fragrance of Citarum”.

Restoration of the 269-kilometer-long river also involved the National Police, river management and environment community. The Citarum restoration project was divided into 20 sectors. Kodam III/Siliwangi military commander Maj. Gen. Doni Monardo directly involved in the program.

“The target is Citarum will be clean within six months. It will be executed in mid January 2018,” said Kodam III/Siliwangi spokesman Col. M Desi Ariyanto. Citarum pollution threatened the life quality of West Java residents. Around 25 million people lived along Citarum stream, making them prone to the impact of river pollution.

Citarum also supplies water for thousand hectares of farmland. Thus, rice and other plantations along Citarum stream were exposed to the river pollution. “Aside from water, rice from the rice field around Citarum was consumed by people. This is dangerous as residents consume contaminated foods,” he said.

Ariyanto added that people needed to be urged to not throw trash into the river. CCTV cameras will be installed to monitor residents.

Independent movement

People around the river did not sit idle. While waiting for a government solution, they actively carried out activities. In Bandung regency, Garda Caah and Jaga Balai continued to advocate residents in times of crisis. Aside from routine meeting, chats and information sharing took place through social media. Scientific information about weather conditions and the potential for disaster were presented and discussed.

They give advocacy to residents in nine districts, such as Majalaya, Paseh, Rancaekek, Ibun, Banjaran, Baleendah, Dayeuhkolot and Bojongsoang. They introduced simple and easy-to-implement programs to the people.

Garda Caah coordinator Riki Waskita said they asked residents to make water blockage from wood panel to block water at their verandah. The water panel was glued with water-resistant material. Also, the residents were told to keep their documents in a safe place and to move electricity installations to higher locations to avoid electrocution during flooding.

“We also make water level measurement on electricity poles or walls. That will help residents get the accurate information and avoid fake information. We want to do simplest thing that residents can also do,” he said.

Citarum has a lot of problems. Infrastructure projects, such as river normalization and water catchments are not a solution without restoration of the critical land. Peoples’ behavior also needs to change.