Gulf of Ambon Under Threat: Maluku Islands

Ambon island, part of an island chain in Maluku province, is currently under threat from rapid sedimentation in the Gulf of Ambon. If in the 1980s the depth of the gulf reached about 40 meters, now it is only about 25 meters, Semmy Littik, coordinator of the Maluku Environment Care Coalition, said.

Speaking at a rally in commemoration of World Environment Day, Semmy said that the sedimentation was caused by eroded soil flushed by the rivers into the gulf.

The lecturer at the Fishery and Marine Science School at Pattimura University said the situation was aggravated by huge piles of garbage on the seabed.

“The results of research by the Institute of Indonesian Sciences in 2007 show the piles of garbage in the Gulf of Ambon reach between five to six meters high,” Semmy said, adding that the situation would grow worse as more garbage, including non-biodegradable waste, was dumped in the sea.

Aside from the sedimentation problem in the Gulf of Ambon, the availability of land in Ambon city has also reached an alarming level, as seen in the destruction of water catchment and nature conservation areas at Air Besar, Kayu Tiga and Gunung Nona.

Tree felling in the area takes place at an uncontrollable rate, while water reserve areas which used to supply water in Ambon have become residential sites, Semmy said.

Semmy criticized the regional administration’s development policy in the Maluku, saying it was a development concept more applicable to continental areas.

Linda Holle, an environment activist from Humanum, said that the environmental situation in Ambon was caused mainly by the poor implementation of existing laws and regulations on the environment that did not leave room for the preservation of the environment itself.

In short the environment problem in Ambon, Linda said, was caused by the administration’s policy, as in the case of pollution in the gulf that was the result of construction work that did not pay attention to rehabilitation efforts.

Meanwhile in the Papuan capital of Jayapura, World Environment Day was marked Tuesday with the planting of 2,000 mangrove trees at Hamadi Beach, one of the city’s tourist sites.

Hamadi Beach was chosen because the area has been damaged by erosion and the mangrove tree planting was hoped to prevent the beach from disappearing.

The planting was presided over by Jayapura Mayor MR. Kambu, accompanied by head of Jayapura Indonesian National Youth Committee Benhur Tomy Mano and other local noted figures.

The planting program is expected to cover 1 hectares and will be carried out by various environmental groups.

Hamadi Beach is located at the Youtefa Gulf tourist site, which has also been contaminated by garbage from Jayapura city.

“The rapid rate of erosion is feared to damage the beach and also a cemetery located at the edge of the coast,” said Jan Hendrik Hamadi, head of Jayapura’s regional development planning agency.

M. Azis Tunny and Nethy Dharma Somba