Abstract
Drawing on Jakarta, Metro Manila and Singapore as case studies, we explore the paradox of slow political action in addressing subsiding land, particularly along high-density urban coastlines with empirical insights from coastal geography, geodesy analysis, geology, and urban planning. In framing land subsidence as a classic 'wicked' policy problem, and also as a hybrid geological and anthropogenic phenomenon that is unevenly experienced across urban contexts, the paper uses a three-step analysis. First, satellite-derived InSAR maps are integrated with Sentinel-1A data in order to reveal the socio-temporal variability of subsidence rates which in turn pose challenges in uniformly applying regulatory action. Second, a multi-sectoral mapping of diverse policies and practices spanning urban water supply, groundwater extraction, land use zoning, building codes, tenurial security, and land reclamation reveal the extent to which the broader coastal governance landscape remains fragmented and incongruous, particularly in arresting a multi-dimensional phenomenon such as subsidence. Finally, in reference to distinct coastal identities of each city-the 'Sinking Capital' (Jakarta), 'Fortress Singapore', and the 'Disaster Capital' (Manila) the paper illustrates how land subsidence is portrayed across the three metropolises in markedly similar ways: as a reversible, quasi-natural, and/or a highly individualized problem.
Highlights
Global sea level rise is one of the most direct consequences of the changing climate and is the result of two main processes [1]
While a critical engagement with diverse policy approaches to studying inaction goes beyond the scope of this paper, we argue that articulations of ‘inaction’ prove useful as a starting point with which to analytically unpack localised Land subsidence (LS) as a purported wicked problem that policymakers often refer to, and what socio-ecological and political implications this labelling offers
Against locally measured rates of land subsidence that are highly variable, the analysis considers a host of reactive policies and adaptive practices that have been put in place, prompting us to revisit the question of whether LS bears the characteristics of a quintessential wicked problem in the first place, and with what implications
Summary
This paper aims at exploring the distance between discourses on catastrophe and urgency, against apparent local policy inaction in three distinct Southeast Asia capitals–Jakarta (Indonesia), Metro Manila, and the island city-state of Singapore
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