“As long as the environmental carrying capacity of these watersheds has not been restored, disaster mitigation will continue to be emergency-based and repetitive,” BNPB Head of Data, Information, and Communication Abdul Muhari said when confirmed here on Wednesday.
He assessed that permanent solutions can only be realized through environmental rehabilitation and the restoration of ecosystem capacity, rather than relying solely on temporary responses.
Without comprehensive improvements, disasters will continue to recur and become an annual routine.
BNPB has recorded several major river drainage basins on Java Island as primary concerns, including the Citarum, Cisadane, Ciliwung, Brantas, Bengawan Solo, and Progo watersheds. In addition, smaller watersheds scattered across urban areas and densely populated regions also require attention.
“In Central Java, several flood control infrastructures such as river embankments in Demak and surrounding areas are considered old and have experienced functional decline,” he said.
Some embankments, he added, are still earthen structures built during the colonial era, making them vulnerable to collapse when water discharge increases.
According to him, aging water infrastructure heightens flood risks and exacerbates damage during extreme weather events.
BNPB emphasized that watershed rehabilitation requires a long period, and landscape restoration cannot be conducted instantly and is estimated to take 15 to 20 years to optimally restore ecological functions.
“Through comprehensive rehabilitation measures and improvements to water infrastructure, we hope future disaster mitigation will no longer be dominated by emergency response patterns, but instead be based on permanent solutions,” he said.
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Translator: Prasetyo, Kenzu
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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