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Indonesia unveils the planned site of its new sustainable capital city

Mar 10, 2023

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Indonesia has unveiled the construction site for its new capital city, which proposes to be a sustainable “forest city” and carbon neutral by 2045. The new city, named Nusantara, will be built in Borneo and replace the current capital, Jakarta.

Jakarta is congested, polluted, and has been sinking into the Java Sea at a rate of several inches per year in some of its northern regions. While rising sea levels have been a factor in Jakarta sinking, the fundamental cause of the sinking is the lack of an adequate public water supply, which has led to massive over-extraction of groundwater, according to National Geographic. About 40% of Jakarta is currently below sea level, and estimates suggest that a third of the city could be submerged by 2050.

Nusantara, which will be about twice the size of New York City, is planned to be surrounded by trees, plant-covered rooftops, creeks, parks and forests. However, critics are concerned about the environmental impact, as Borneo is among the most biologically diverse habitats on the planet, and home to endangered wildlife like the orangutan.

Indigenous groups that reside in the region and already lost parts of their land fear that urban sprawl from the new capital could make things even worse, according to The Associated Press.

The Indonesian government has stated that it is being mindful of these concerns, with options for affected groups to be included in the process. Construction workers are already clearing, plowing and building the first phases of the site, with key buildings, such as the presidential palace, expected to be completed by August 2024.

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MAHMOUD BENNETT:

INDONESIA HAS UNVEILED THE AREA THAT IT WILL BUILD ITS NEW CAPITAL – THE COUNTRY IS PROMISING A SUSTAINABLE FOREST CITY THAT WILL BE CARBON-NEUTRAL BY 2045

LOCATED IN BORNEO THE NEW CITY OF NUSANTARA WILL REPLACE THE CURRENT CAPITAL JAKARTA, WHICH SITS ABOUT 800 MILES AWAY: JAKARTA IS CONGESTED, POLLUTED, AND HAS BEEN SINKING INTO THE JAVA SEA AT SEVERAL INCHES PER YEAR

WHILE RISING SEA LEVELS HAVE BEEN A FACTOR, EXPERTS SAY THE MAIN CAUSE HAS BEEN PUBLIC WATER SUPPLIES AND THE UNCONTROLLED EXTRACTION OF GROUNDWATER IN THE LARGELY CONCRETE CITY

ABOUT 40% OF JAKARTA IS CURRENTLY BELOW SEA LEVEL, AND ESTIMATES SAY THAT A THIRD OF THE CITY COULD BE SUBMERGED BY 2050

THE NEW CAPITAL, WHICH WOULD BE ABOUT TWICE THE SIZE OF NEW YORK CITY – PLANS TO BE SURROUNDED BY TREES, PLANT COVERED ROOFTOPS, CREAKS, PARKS AND FORESTS

OFFICIALS TOUT IT AS FUTURISTIC AND GREEN 

MEANWHILE SKEPTICS ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT,

AS BORNEO IS AMONG THE MOST BIOLOGICALLY DIVERSE HABITATS ON THE PLANET – HOME TO LEOPARDS AND THE CRITICALLY ENDANGERED ORANGUTAN AMONG OTHER WILDLIFE

INDIGENOUS GROUPS HAVE ALSO LOST THEIR LAND AND CRITICS BELIEVE DEFORESTATION WILL ONLY MAKE IT WORSE – CONCERNS THE INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT HAS SAID THEY’RE BEING MINDFUL OF

THOUGH WE’LL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE – THE PROJECT LIKELY WON’T BE COMPLETED UNTIL 2045 – THAT’S YOUR QUICK BREAKDOWN WITH STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS – UNBIASED STRAIGHT FACTS