Jonathan writes*
Jakarta’s water distribution systems faces an existential threat. While 13 watersheds converge in Jakarta’s basin, only 1% of Jakarta’s surface water is utilized by its water distribution system due to high contamination (Ardhianie et al., 2021). Instead, the vast majority (67%) of the city’s water originates from groundwater reservoirs (Ardhianie et al., 2021). And excessive groundwater pumping threatens the city’s very existence.
Jakarta is one of the world’s fastest sinking cities, dropping by 1-15 centimeters per year. Experts project that 95% of the city will be underwater by 2050 (Jakarta…). Removal of groundwater results in increased compaction of soil, reducing the stability of the silty and sandy land and increasing soil erosion (Bakr, 2015).
These extraction woes originate from PAM Jaya’s (Jakarta’s water company) lack of distribution. Most Jakarta residents do not contract with PAM Jaya, instead taking groundwater from their own wells in ignorance or defiance of regulations. Whincup et al. (2023), using a conservative estimate of 30% of the population having a artisanal well, estimated that 300,000+ artisanal wells extract roughly 3000 Liters/second; 4,000+ illegal deep drill wells take even more.
PAM Jaya is trying to solve this issue by increasing the availability of piped water to the people of Jakarta. In 2024, PAM Jaya set out a goal of piping 71,207 households by the end of the year, ultimately aiming to have the entirety of Jakarta connected to its water grid by 2030 (PAM Jaya Kebut). It is also attempting to increase its overall water distribution capacity and the quality of the water provided through pipes, to incentivize usage. The company has been building more pumps and feeds directly extracting water from outside rivers such as the Jatiluhur to improve supply (PAM Jaya Perluas) and also contracted PT Air Bersih Indonesia (PT ABI, or “Clean Water Indonesia”) to build a new water treatment plant and more pipe connections (World’s Fastest…).
However, PAM Jaya faces multiple challenges to its objective. Most visibly, PAM Jaya has had numerous issues regarding the quality of its services. 50% of the water transported by PAM Jaya winds up leaking out of the system (Whincup et al., 2013). PAM Jaya water is also often contaminated or undrinkable due to mismanaged infrastructure, adding to the attraction of free groundwater (World’s Fastest…). Finally, the recent deal with PT ABI was criticized for its lack of transparency and failing to solve poorly maintained piping infrastructure and water contamination (World’s Fastest…).
Bottom Line: Jakarta is irreversibly sinking in part due to excessive unregulated groundwater use. Governmental efforts to solve this are extensive, but marred by a variety of issues regarding quality and regulation.
* Please help my Water Scarcity students by commenting on unclear analysis, alternative perspectives, better data sources, or maybe just saying something nice 🙂
Hello Jonathan,
I have enjoyed your blog post on Jakarta. The 50% leakage reports of water being transported by PAM JAYA accompanied by the poor water quality is intriguing. What are some suggestions to imporve the PAM JAYA lack of distribution?
Hey Ari
The main way to improve the lack of distribution via leakage (beyond what PAM Jaya is already attempting at doing) is through revamping the existing network of pipes to use newer, more modern pipes. I have spread a bit of misinformation, as the figure provided earlier was accurate to the year 2000. A more recent figure from 2019 I found earlier put the leakage at 25%, which, while a drastic improvement, still shows critical failures within the system and a need to refurbish and repair more pipes. After all, if you look at the news it really seems like large scale pipe failures are an annual event where I come from. In addition, poor water quality can be somewhat remedied long term by a mixture of changes to and enforcement of cleaner freshwater and groundwater disposal and new treatment plants. However, the government has actually been very transparent about how they do not intend to ever treat Indonesian water to a quality where it will be drinkable straight from the tap.
https://pdampintar.id/blog/lainnya/sejarah-perusahaan-air-minum-di-indonesia/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/342772248_Optimalisasi_Panjang_Jaringan_Pipa_Air_Bersih_di_Dki_Jakarta_Menggunakan_Minimum_Spanning_Tree
Hey Ari
The main suggestion to reduce leakage is to simply refurbish the pipes. Many of the pipes currently being run have 20 year expected lifespans, but a lot of the pipes that have been bursting have 25 year lifespans. The issue with this solution is that its fairly expensive to refurbish most of the pipes and they take months to install, potentially leaving locales with reduced service (and a lot of traffic and some disrupted business at the construction sites).