IPB Supported to Realize Bogor Water Sensitive City

Bogor City was awarded much rain, with an average of 3000-3500 mm/year, so that Bogor was known as the Rain City. This high rainfall made the stakeholders of Bogor City need to clean to the water friendly city. Without realizing, the change in the land use and the climate change in Bogor City and its surroundings, would impact onto the socio-economic life and the potential disaster that would threaten the safety of the community life of Bogor City. This was conveyed by the Professor of Bogor Agricultural University (IPB), Prof.Dr. Hadi Susilo Arifin, in the event of the Focus Group Discussion (FGD) in Bogor City Hall, recently.

Prof. Hadi added, the change of Bogor was from just as the passive Rain City to be a friendly city toward the water rersouce (Bogor water sensitive city). ?Recently, it occurs the landslide in Paledang and the flood in SMAN 2 Bogor. It is aware of all parties, that the potential as well as the threats of flood and landslide have taken place around us. The danger has caused the loss of the properties and the lives, the material and the immaterial for the people of Bogor City,? he said.

Bogor Mayor, Dr. Bima Arya, thanked to IPB, said that the keyword in the current FGD was that the science that would bring the solutions. ?The micro strategy to be attempted related to the water resource is to increase the water capacity. The water channel capacity is increased again. Try the drainage normalization strategy,? he explained.

Acknowledged by the Mayor, the flood problems recently was a systemic issue. Therefore, the Government of Bogor City was conducting the re-arrangement of the urban planning.

This FGD was a collaboration from the researchers incorporating in the Urban Water Research Cluster (UWRC), Australia Indonesia Centre (AIC) in collaboration with the Government of Bogor City. AIC was founded by the governments of Australia and Indonesia as the form of cooperation of Government to Government (G to G) with the focus on the network development of multi-stakeholders between Australia and Indonesia by conducting a comprehensive range of activities. One of the cooperatives of University to University (U to U) held under AIC was the cooperation between Monash University, IPB and University of Indonesia (UI) in Urban Water Research Cluster (UWRC) to conduct a high quality research, applicative and having the major impact for Bogor City in particular and Indonesian nation in general.

This FGD aimed to achieve the synergy between the researchers/academicians, the Goverment of Bogor City, the economic actors (companies) and the community and the media personnel in viewing the problems faced. This FGD was also expected to provide the input for Bappeda and the Government of Bogor City in carrying out the sustainable development based on the water resource; it was able to utilize all the potentials owned, both its potential as the city with the high rainfall, the lots of water, surrounded by many rivers and flanked by Mount Salak and Mount Pangrango. Moreover, the position of Bogor City was very strategic as the buffer area of Jakarta Capital in the water supply, and also preventing against the flooding. Bogor City also had the potential to provide the clean water for Bogor City, Bogor District, Depok City and DKI Jakarta.(dh)