JAKARTA. Jakarta Governor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said that his administration was planning the construction of 24 new reservoirs to support flood mitigation efforts.

“We will build as many new reservoirs as possible. Currently, we have begun the construction of new reservoirs while the old ones are being dredged,” Jokowi said at Jakarta City Hall on Thursday as quoted by Antara news agency.

The 24 reservoirs consist of 15 small reservoirs with an area of six hectares (ha) each and nine big reservoirs with an area of 20 ha each. The reservoirs are scattered across the five municipalities of Jakarta.

The city administration will also dredge 76 reservoirs to accommodate more water. The reservoirs include Marunda, Rorotan, Pondok Ranggon, Giri Kencana and Nusa Kencana.

One of dredging projects at Giri Kencana in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, is currently with six months left until its planned completion. The reservoir has a total area of 6.4 hectares and a capacity of 320,000 cubic meters of water.

Of the total 6.4 ha, 2.5 ha of land has yet to be acquired. The Jakarta administration allocated Rp 14.7 billion (US$1.29 million) in 2012 and Rp 10 billion in 2013 for land acquisition. (meh)

Jakarta to build 24 reservoirs this year

Editor: Asnil Amri