Jeneberang Watershed Area Damaged and Neglected

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

A resident shows remnants of a house that was washed away during flooding in Tamalate district, Makassar city, South Sulawesi, on Sunday (02/03/2019). A number of houses on the banks of the Jeneberang River were flooded on Jan. 22, 2019 due to environmental damage in the upstream area.

GOWA, KOMPAS – Extreme rainfall that hit South Sulawesi on Jan. 22 has caused severe environmental damage to the Jeneberang River watershed area (DAS), especially in the upstream region.

An investigation in early February uncovered environmental degradation in the upstream and downstream regions. The 75-kilometer river, which flows from Mount Bawakaraeng through Gowa and Takalar regencies as well as Makassar to the Makassar Strait, is in a critical condition.

Upstream in Malino and Kanreapia, Gowa regency, forests have been converted into plantations, villas and residences. In Parang Loe district, Gowa regency, sand mining on the river is rampant. Downstream in Makassar, houses were illegally built on sediment while commercial buildings dominate the riverbank.

Lacking forest coverage

Forest coverage in the Jeneberang DAS has also decreased. Data from the Public Works and Housing Ministry’s Pompengan-Jeneberang River Management Center (BBWS) showed that forest coverage decreased from 37,042 hectares in 2011 to only 11,686 ha in 2015.

Environmental degradation in Jeneberang’s upstream region is visible in Malino, Tinggimoncong district, and in Kanreapia village, Tombolo Pao district. Locals are also cultivating land in the Malino Nature Tourism Park (TWA) conservation zone on the foothills of Mount Bawakaraeng.

South Sulawesi natural resources conservation agency (BKSDA) head Thomas Nifinluri said the lack of a border agreement between Malino TWA’s management and the Gowa regency administration had led to the BKSDA having no legal power to ban the construction of social and public facilities within the conservation zone.

Thomas added that the critical condition of the Jeneberang River’s upstream region was caused by the land conversion of around 72 percent of the 3,500 ha of forest in the conservation zone, among other reasons.

“Currently, there are around 2,540 ha of social and public facilities. The land has been occupied since 1960, three decades before it was declared a conservation zone in 1991,” he said.

Apart from conservation zones, the forest in the Jeneberang DAS also comprises protected and production forests, which are all suffering a similar fate. Conservation forests are managed by the South Sulawesi BKSDA, while protected and production forests are managed by the forestry agency.

South Sulawesi forestry agency head Muhammad Tamzil said land conversion and forest encroachment occurred due to poor monitoring, adding that corrupt forestry agency employees were involved in illegal land conversions within the protected and production forest areas.

Apart from the upstream region, the Jeneberang River’s midstream region has also been damaged by rampant sand mining. Data from the South Sulawesi energy and mineral resources agency shows that 18 mining companies have licenses to carry out activities on the river. Hasanuddin University hydrologist, Farouk Maricar said sand mines could damage nearby sabo dams, which are used to control river sediment. Of the river’s 29 dams, four have been damaged.

Illegal houses

Problems are also rampant in the downstream region. As of late February, the river was filled with sediment deposits that are converted into agricultural, farming and residential areas. This was visible in Parang Tambung village, Makassar.

DAS laboratory head Usman Arsyad of Hasanuddin University’s School of Forestry said the wide gap in Jeneberang’s water debit in the dry and rainy seasons was one of the main reasons why the river’s watershed area was damaged.

In the rainy season, a high water debit might result in overflowing, Usman added. In other words, the lack of water catchment areas will result in water running off directly towards the river in the rainy season. While in the dry season, no water will flow to the river. Data collected by the Pompengan-Jeneberang BBWS in January showed that the Jeneberang River’s water debit was 3,198.18 cubic meters per second in the rainy season and only 6.5 cubic meters per second in the dry season.

Environmental damage in the Jeneberang DAS can also be found in the high levels of sedimentation in the Jeneberang River and the Bili-bili Dam. During the heavy downpour on Jan. 22, the dam was unable to function as a water reservoir to prevent flooding. (ILO/BKY/DiM/REN)