Jakarta’s pandemic water stress: hitting the economy and the urban poor

Jakarta, the heart of Indonesia, is home to over 10 million people and contributes 17% of the national GDP. Yet, beneath its towering skyline and bustling streets lies a city grappling with a dire water crisis, one exacerbated by climate change, unregulated urban expansion, and a failing infrastructure. As the island of Java faces increasingly erratic weather patterns longer dry seasons and more intense rainfall Jakarta finds itself caught in a vicious cycle of water scarcity, pollution, and devastating floods. With unchecked construction reducing green spaces from 29% in 2007 to a mere 9% by 2013, water struggles to percolate into the ground, exacerbating flood risks and land subsidence. Meanwhile, all 13 rivers coursing through the city remain heavily polluted.

Jakarta’s Dependence on a Failing Water System

The city sources 80% of its water from the Jatiluhur Dam on the Citarum River, with the remaining 20% coming from the Cisadane and Krukut Rivers. However, Jakarta’s water supply remains insufficient, leaving about 30% of residents reliant on groundwater. This over-extraction is sinking the city some areas in North Jakarta could be 95% underwater by 2050. Worse still, much of the groundwater is no longer safe. Contaminated by septic tanks, faecal matter, and metals like iron and manganese, it poses severe health risks. In fact, 50% of shallow wells contain sewage, making clean water a luxury for many.

The Reality of Water Inequality

For the city’s poor, water scarcity has become an unbearable burden. The lack of piped connections has led to an informal yet exploitative system known as ‘nyelang’ where residents buy water from their neighbors at exorbitant prices. A study in Penjaringan sub-district found that 88.23% of the poorest households rely on nyelang, compared to just 11.76% of wealthier ones. Shockingly, this informal water costs nine times more than municipal supplies. With some households spending up to 25% of their monthly income on water, access to this basic necessity has become a financial trap for the underprivileged.

A City Drowning in Its Own Waste

Jakarta’s water crisis is compounded by its failing sanitation infrastructure. Only 5% of the city is connected to a sewer system, leaving 85% of wastewater to flow untreated into rivers and canals. Most households rely on septic tanks, which frequently leak and pollute groundwater. In an attempt to address this crisis, the government launched the construction of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (IPAL) in 2019, utilizing a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor system. However, the city’s master plan envisions only 14 wastewater zones, leaving large gaps in coverage. Additionally, the absence of secondary grids means that much of Jakarta’s sewage still has to be transported manually by trucks, an inefficient and underutilized system.

Health at Risk: The Deadly Intersection of Water Scarcity and Disease

Jakarta’s lack of clean water has dire health consequences. The COVID-19 pandemic heightened the need for sanitation, yet many residents were unable to meet even the most basic hygiene standards. With more than 51,000 cases recorded by September 2020, Jakarta bore the brunt of Indonesia’s outbreak. Meanwhile, waterborne diseases like diarrhea and cholera continue to afflict the city’s poorest, while stagnant water from flooding has fueled a rise in dengue fever. Slum dwellers, left out of government sanitation plans, remain the most vulnerable. With their ability to work and earn already compromised, the poor face a vicious cycle of poverty, disease, and economic instability.

The Economic Toll: A City’s Growth at Stake

Jakarta’s economy, already weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic, is being further strained by water shortages. The city saw an 8.22% economic contraction between April and June 2020, outpacing the national GDP decline of 5.32%. Water scarcity threatens key industries, including construction, which employs over 425,000 workers and accounts for 26% of the national sector. Without reliable water access, construction projects grind to a halt, impacting both laborers and businesses. Even the dairy industry, which produces over 5.2 million liters of milk annually, is at risk, as cows require significant amounts of water. Water shortages are no longer just an environmental issue they are an economic disaster in the making.

Can Jakarta Overcome Its Water Crisis?

Urgent action is needed to secure Jakarta’s water future. Short-term relief measures, such as subsidized municipal water tankers, could ease the burden on residents. Expanding wastewater treatment and integrating it with existing infrastructure is crucial currently, Jakarta produces 2,500 million liters of wastewater daily, while the new IPAL plant will treat only 8.64 million liters per day. Without a dramatic increase in sewage treatment capacity, water pollution will persist.

Preventing excessive groundwater abstraction is another critical step in halting land subsidence and contamination. But to truly address Jakarta’s water crisis, a shift towards a community-driven approach is necessary. Policymakers must engage with diverse communities to develop inclusive, localized water management strategies. A bottom-up approach where residents are empowered to shape policies that directly impact their access to water will be essential in ensuring long-term sustainability.

Jakarta’s future hangs in the balance. Will it remain a vibrant, thriving metropolis, or will it succumb to rising waters, pollution, and economic decline? The answer depends on how quickly and effectively the city can act to secure its most essential resource: water.

source :

https://www.urbanet.info/jakartas-pandemic-water-stress-hitting-the-economy-and-the-urban-poor/