Case 6 - Local Government, Regional Development and Urban Forestry

Different with the case 5, this case of Urban Forests is related to local government.

Urban green in Indonesia (including trees and remaining forest paths in the urban environment) is managed by dedicated administrative departments for urban landscaping (Dinas Pertamananan) under the local government responsibility. The forestry sector is excluded and has no influence on planning and implementation. Under these circumstances, the current practices of urban forest development at regional level might be incompatible with the goals and principles of the ecosystem approach in an area that gets more and more urbanized. Landscape architects concentrate on single trees, their site and maintenance requirements, resilience, growth forms and aesthetical value. Environmental functions, like filtering air pollution, absorbing and mitigating noises, or shading and heat regulation are neglected (see case 5) and most unlikely considered in their spacious context and effects.

Figure 5.5 (right) gives an example of old growth trees (Ficus benjamina) found in Kota Surakarta. The old trees do still exist because people still do believe in the natural spirit of the trees. As sacred such tree stands are rare, but much sought after by shop keepers and rick sags operators who benefit from the shade during the day.

Figure 5.5 Photo Satellite Image of Kota Surakarta and Old Growth Trees in Kota Surakarta

Surakarta municipality (Kota Surakarta) covers an area of about 44 km² supporting more than 500.000 inhabitants. As a medium sized urban area, it is located in the Upper Solo Basin (Sub-Basin Bambang), where the area has been rapidly urbanized. According to Alif Noor Anna et al. (2010), this Sub-Basin is one of areas with the highest potential run-off due to land use change. New green space areas (GSA) are very important for the natural urban environment as well as for aesthetic and emotional reasons.

The Kota Surakarta’s Regional Development Plan (Rencana Tata Ruang Wilayah/RTRW Kota Surakarta 1993-2013) was authorized by the Local Congress and consists of annual programmes (Rencana Umum Pembangunan Tahunan Daerah/RUPTD) which are designed based on a consultation process (consultation, coordination and confirmation). Related issues cover human resources, finances, business, management of the city development, culture and tourism, and living conditions of the city’s urban society.

The plan gives priority to land empowerment, increasing appreciation as well as sustaining traditional-culture and addressing social problems, business development, finance resources and regional income. Although decreasing living conditions have been indicated, and the Comprehensive Development and Management Plan for the Bengawan Solo River Basin (DepKimpraswil 2001) has stated the lack of integrated management for development as the main problem, including the municipality’s development, the issue of urban forests and green areas remained excluded in the respective development plan.

Source: Sattelitephoto Google maps, 2014

Source: Private photo 2003

However, in 2000-2012 under the city’s major Joko Widodo, the city’s development direction made an effort towards greening the area. Based on field observations at the end of 2011/ early 2012, tree planting along road’s sides was actively implemented. Furthermore, rebuilding, renovating and reactivating most historical public areas and parks in the city, like Taman Monumen 45 Banjarsari, Taman Balekambang, Taman Tirtonadi, and Taman Sekartaji were included in the city’s development agenda. Under the major’s leadership, the city has committed to achieve 30% of the city area to be developed as Green Space Areas (GSAs) following the Spatial Planning Law requirement. As an impressive result, the city has reached already almost 20% of the total area to become GSAs (Kompas Jateng 2010). In the following five years, some old parks which have not been well maintained, like Sriwedari, Manahan, Kentingan, Alun-alun Selatan, Solo Techno-Park and Lapangan Mangkunegaran, will also be rebuilt. The Cleaning and Landscaping Agency (Dinas Kebersihan dan Pertamanan/DKP) under the city major has the responsibility to maintain them.

The historical Parks in Surakarta are usually dominated by old growth trees, which were previously untended, including the surrounding environment. Species selection for side roads greening or parks still consider more aesthetic reasons rather than also other purposes, e.g. noise reduction, pollution absorption, cover of undesired views, birds attraction or biodiversity improvement, etc.

b) Conclusions and Recommendations

Urbanization creates a high demand for land for settlements and infrastructure. As a result, procurement for open or green spaces might be seen as a waste, or at least as unprofitable although declining living conditions in the city have been considered and a minimum size of GSA has been stipulated in the Spatial Law. As described in CDMA (DepKimpraswil 2001), there is lack of integrated development. Not only the development of the city in the BS Basin context, but also in the context of the city itself.

GSA and trees are multi-functional: They promote water infiltration; regulate micro-climate; absorb pollutants like dust, CO2, SO_x; regulate noise; give shade, cover undesired views, provide recreation and enjoyment opportunities and improve people’s attachment to the area.etc. In the above mentioned case, the historical parks in the city are collectively redesigned considering their social purposes. The forestry sector could provide valuable experience and knowledge for example concerning species selection by considering trees architecture, rooting, stability, or biodiversity effects.

Collaboration between the forestry sector, settlement and infrastructure development and the Cleaning and Landscaping Agency introduced by the local government concerning GSA is not yet established but could help to implement the value of GSA and trees in the

development programmes. So far, most activities and initiatives in this respect do depend on the executive leader, but not on mutual convincement and will.