World’s Fastest Sinking City Jakarta

Table of Contents

Questions

Major cities of India are becoming vulnerable to flood conditions. Discuss.
The frequency of urban floods due to high intensity rainfall is increasing over the years. Discussing the reasons for urban floods, highlight the mechanisms for preparedness to reduce the risk during such events.
With reference to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelines, discuss the measures to be adopted to mitigate the impact of recent incidents of cloudbursts in many places of Uttarakhand.

If we look at models, by 2050 about 95% of North Jakarta will be submerged.”
It’s already happening – North Jakarta has sunk 2.5m in 10 years and is continuing to sink by as much as 25cm a year in some parts, which is more than double the global average for coastal megacities.
Jakarta is sinking by an average of 1-15cm a year and almost half the city now sits below sea level

The dramatic rate at which Jakarta is sinking is partly down to the excessive extraction of groundwater for use as drinking water, for bathing and other everyday purposes by city dwellers. Piped water isn’t reliable or available in most areas so people have no choice but to resort to pumping water from the aquifers deep underground.
But when groundwater is pumped out, the land above it sinks as if it is sitting on a deflating balloon – and this leads to land subsidence.

Economic development has worsened the effects of the subsidence, says another media report. The impact of subsidence, due mainly to groundwater extraction, is greater when populations tend to increase near low lying areas. It says that in 2010, the number of people living in vulnerable coastal areas in Indonesia was 47.2 million – one of the highest globally, and up 35 per cent since 1990.
Unchecked urbanisation without proper groundwater recharge can have devastating effects. The 2015 floods in Chennai in Tamil Nadu were seen as a result of the same.

Coastal cities are affected because of rising sea levels caused by climate change. The report says that increased sea levels occur because of thermal expansion – the water expanding because of extra heat – and the melting of polar ice. Experts suggest reintroducing mangroves and rejuvenating reservoirs actually part of old Jakarta.
All the issues combined together exacerbate the effects. Since the growing urban population increases the water demand, climate change will make supply more variable. This will further increase groundwater exploitation.