Urban Lakes in Megacity Jakarta: Risk and Management Plan for Future Sustainability

Abstract

The impact of urban development in the distinct surrounding inhabited areas on urban lakes in megacity Jakarta has been so pervasive that makes the lakes very vulnerable to environmental disturbances. High levels of disturbances to the urban lakes from urban development in the past and recent years, such as lake filling, land use change, shoreline encroachment, and garbage dump, have caused nearly 10 - 20% of urban lakes loss in megacity Jakarta. The consistency of lakes loss has been estimated from the old-Dutch map to the recent year maps indicating that the lakes continuously have been sacrificed for urban area development. In addition to the lake front destruction, siltation and the excessive macrophyte coverage have caused more than 25% of existing lakes shrinkage in area and volume and based on the lake morphology assessment, nearly 50% of lakes have been damaged. The lakes inurban village, rural village, agricultural and urban village – industrial areas are at high risk of lakefront landscape destruction, siltation/sedimentation, eutrophication and water pollution, including pathogenic bacteria and toxic pollutants contamination that can pose threat on human's health as results of untreated sewage inflow and storm water runoff to the lakes. The complexity of the problems faced by urban lakes in Jakarta requires a comprehensive management plan that is not only effective in maintaining the stability of lake ecosystem but also effective in improving urban life, such as socio-culture-economic conditions of people around the lakes. Fundamental requirement is that the urban lake should be managed according to its surrounding characteristics and conditions, and functional context.