Nusantara: A Bright Future for a Climate Resilient City

Tijdlijn

Issues

Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, faces many problems in the water sector. Floods and scarcity of clean drinking water is something that most residents in Jakarta have experienced several times. 

Today there are 10 million residents in Jakarta, all of whom yearn for healthy living conditions. During the rainy season, the city is unable to collect and drain excess rainwater, so the excess rainwater ends up on the streets. Climate changes will ensure that extreme weather conditions, heavy rainfall and thus flooding will occur more often if no measures are taken in the city of Jakarta. 

 

A shortage of clean water for both drinking water and industrial use causes residents to withdraw groundwater. The subsoil of Jakarta consists mainly of clay, so when groundwater is extracted the ground will gradually sink. 

Research by Delataris shows that Jakarta is sinking by twenty centimeters per year. This above-proportional subsidence in combination with rising sea levels makes Jakarta more vulnerable to flooding. 

 

In conclusion, the city of Jakarta can no longer be saved and its residents have to move. 

The government of Indonesia has decided to move Jakarta to the island of Borneo north of the city of Jakarta, the new city will be called Nusantara. Nusantara will become the new political capital of Indonesia. 

 

The new city of Nusantara will offer many opportunities regarding; quality of life and for the economic growth of Indonesia. To take advantage of these opportunities and ensure that Nusantara does not suffer the same fate as Jakarta, measures will have to be taken. 

Different threats

  • The situation is now so bad that 96% of Jakarta's river water is classified as 'heavily polluted'. 
  • About 75% of the pollution comes from domestic wastewater. 
  • In North Jakarta, the ground has sunk by 4 meters over the past 35 years. Due to the massive pumping of groundwater, the ground of Jakarta is sinking by about 10 to 20 centimeters per year. 
  • This subsidence also makes the city increasingly vulnerable to flooding. During the rainy season (November to April), heavy downpours regularly flood thousands of homes, businesses and roads. A year ago, dozens of people were killed 
  • The residents have been mad for years about the traffic, which is always stuck. 
  • Together with the heavy industry in the area, this results in dramatic air quality, which in turn leads to millions of cases of illness. 
  • The costs for the government are estimated at 446 trillion rupiah, equivalent to more than 28 billion euros for the new capital. The government only pays 20% of the total cost of the project 
  • At the same time, there are doubts whether the country, which does not have the best reputation in the field of urban planning, can handle the construction of such a new city. 
  • This is also subject to criticism: while the problems in the sinking and congested Jakarta are not being solved, the government is spending astronomical amounts on relocating civil servants. 

New place the city of Nusantara

  • There are a number of main reasons why the city of Jakarta is being moved to the new city of Nusanatra: 

    1) Overcrowding: Jakarta is one of the most densely populated cities in the world and faces serious problems due to overcrowding, such as traffic congestion, air pollution and a lack of sufficient infrastructure and amenities. Moving the city to a new location can better disperse the population and reduce these problems. 

    2) Natural disasters: Jakarta is located on the island of Java and is regularly affected by floods and earthquakes. These natural disasters have caused extensive damage to the city and its infrastructure. By moving to a new location that is less vulnerable to these types of disasters, the city can be better protected and the effects of natural disasters can be reduced. 

    3) Sea level rise: Jakarta is located on the coast and is experiencing a sharp rise in sea level due to climate change. This has led to regular flooding and salinization of groundwater, causing major problems for the city's water supply. By moving to a new location, the city can be protected from the effects of rising sea levels. 

    4) Economic growth: The move from Jakarta to Nusanatra is part of a larger plan to stimulate economic growth and development in other parts of Indonesia. By creating a new capital, the government hopes to attract investment and employment to other parts of the country, while easing pressure on Jakarta. 

    All these reasons together led to the decision to move Jakarta to the new city of Nusanatra. It is an ambitious project that poses many challenges, but the government hopes it will result in a better quality of life for Jakarta residents and make a positive contribution to Indonesia's development. 

     

    For these reasons, the city of Jakarta will move to the island of Borneo, where the new city of Nusantara will offer a new living environment for the residents. 

     

    Figuur 1, Location Nusantara 

Nusantara master plan

Figuur 2, City of Nusantara 

 
The project of moving the city Jakarta to the new city of Nusantara consists of 5 phases; 

Phase 1 2022-2024: 

In the first phase, basic infrastructure such as electricity, water supply, main roads and core public transport infrastructure will be constructed. The first buildings are also being completed for government purposes. 

Phase 2 2025-2029: 

The second phase of the development will focus on mixed use of the space, delivering business and industrial districts, education and tourism facilities. In addition, investments are being made in advanced IT infrastructure and additional facilities to support the growing population. By the end of this phase, it is expected that approximately 1.2 million people will have settled in Nusantara. These diverse residents mainly consist of civil servants, students, academics, researchers and professionals working in the service sectors, such as construction, housing, food and drink, and retail. 

Phase 3 2030-2034: 

The third phase will focus on the development of mass transport infrastructure. During this phase, the focus will also be on expanding the waste and water infrastructure. 

Phase 4 2035-2039: 

In the fourth phase, the main thrust will be the development of the education and healthcare sectors. Furthermore, in this phase, the residential areas will be expanded and the concept of the "smart city" will be further developed. 

Phase 5 2040-2045: 

During the final phase, the residential areas and the "smart city" concept will be completed and the city will have approximately 1.7 to 1.9 million inhabitants. 

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Solutions for the new city of Nusantara

Figuur 3, Circular use of rainwater

Solutions for the new city of Nusantara

Solution (1); Creating climate-resistant sewerage with drinking water facilities 

The sewerage system can be rebuilt in the new city of Nusantara. Because it can be re-constructed, new solutions can be looked at to solve the problems that arise when draining large quantities of water. A possible (partial) solution is to install a separate sewerage system. This system brings a number of advantages. The next paragraph explains three of them. A first advantage is that a separate sewer system has separate pipes for waste water and rainwater. This means that during heavy rain, the wastewater can simply be drained to a treatment plant and the excess rainwater is discharged into the surface water. The advantage of this is that the water that is poured over is cleaner. Furthermore, a separated system ensures that treatment plants are less burdened during heavy rainfall, this is because less water is led to the treatment plants during these showers. Finally, a separated system is more environmentally friendly, this is because rainwater that is not contaminated can be reused locally if it can be stored or it can infiltrate into the soil without causing damage to this soil. 

The core solution of the separated sewer system is to anticipate the amount of dirty water. An estimate of water consumption by households and companies is relatively easy to calculate. While the amount of precipitation can fluctuate enormously and this places a considerable burden on the sewerage system. During times of heavy rainfall, excess rainwater can be discharged into the surface water without burdening the sewerage system. This rainwater is relatively clean and does not pollute nearby water bodies. 

Not only to combat flooding and pollution. Should the new city of Nusanatra be completely self-sufficient? The solution is to purify fallen rainwater on households and use it by residents and companies. This is why; A new stream of thought needs to be implemented 

Not a drop goes to waste! 

The vision for the future regarding water in the new city of Nusantara can be summarized in one word; Circularity. The collection of rainwater through roofs and/or rain barrels will be reused by households and companies. Drinking water supplies are decentralized in this way. The size of drinking water companies is less useful. The raw material extraction of water is less. Freshwater bodies and groundwater are extracted less, which will drastically maintain land subsidence and freshwater scarcity compared to the current regulatory effect.

Solution (2); Creating climate-resistant polder system 

The solution is to create a polder system, see image (4). 

 

Figuur 4, Polder system Nusantara 

 

To divert heavy rainfall outside the city, measures will also be implemented in the water system of the new city of Nusantara. There is a relatively high ridge northwest of the city of Nusanatra. Thus, rainfall will be a concern in the northwestern part of Nusanatra city as this part is lower than the ridge. All fallen rainwater will be conducted here. 

With this polder system, the northwestern part of the city of Nusantara is resistant to rainwater, which drains from the northwestern mountains towards the city. With the integrated solution, nine kilometers of dike will be constructed. A nature-friendly bank will be constructed around this dike. The nature-friendly bank has a slope of 1:4 meters. By using a gentle slope, the negative ecological effects will be reduced. The gentle slope also offers a considerably large storage area during times of high rainwater. Rainwater would initially lie on the ground level of the city and then be stored in the bank around the city’s fence in the northwestern part. 


 
 

Figuur 3, Circular use of rainwater