Unrinews. BRGM collaborated with researchers from the Center for Excellence in Science and Technology (PUI) Peat and Disaster UNRI to review and obtain views on land management strategies affected by seawater in Kuala Selat, Kateman District, Indragiri Hilir Regency, Riau, on August 12-14, 2024.
This village suddenly went viral because it experienced an ecological disaster in the form of seawater flooding which resulted in no less than 1700 ha of community coconut plantations being submerged and the plants dying. Given that coconut plantations are the mainstay of local people's lives, this incident certainly has a very significant social impact.
The Peat and Mangrove Restoration Agency (BRGM), which is responsible for peat and mangrove restoration, has a great interest in getting involved in mitigating this large-scale coastal disaster.
Sigit Sutikno, chairman of PUI Peat and Disaster Management and one of the researchers who also went into the field, provided his views on the importance of water management in this case.
"The breach in the land embankment that had been made from soil by the community resulted in seawater being able to freely reach far inland in the affected locations, so that the damage to the community's coconut plantations became more widespread," explained Sigit.
"This fundamentally changes the condition of the coconut plantation land, making it likely to be unsuitable for cultivation. On the other hand, this provides hope for the possibility of mangroves growing again, either naturally or through rehabilitation," he continued.
"However, it is likely that engineering is needed to accelerate the mangrove rehabilitation process. Among them is by trying to accelerate sediment accumulation through the creation of breakwaters or wave-breaking structures."
Ahmad Muhammad, a researcher from PUI Peat and Disaster who also participated in the review, gave the view that there is a large potential for natural regeneration on the land affected by seawater. "But it should not be forgotten, there is a potential for this process to fail if we only rely on nature," he added.
According to Ahmad, there is a possibility that the ecological process as expected will only make the former coconut plantation land into a stretch of piai (Acrostichum aureum) fields, a type of highly invasive fern. "If this plant first controls the surface of the former coconut plantation land, then the opportunity for natural mangrove regeneration becomes very small and if rehabilitation must be carried out, it will take a lot of effort to clean this type of fern first."
The group led directly by Hartono, the head of BRGM, in addition to including his two deputies, also brought Azwar Maas, a professor of soil science from UGM. Azwar mentioned several critical factors that will determine whether mangroves will be able to grow or not on this land. "One of them, the most dangerous is the oxidation of iron into pyrite, which has the potential to be toxic to all plants, including mangroves," said the expert.
On this occasion, Gatot Soebiantoro, who currently serves as Deputy IV of BRGM, emphasized the need for cooperation from various parties to find solutions to the problems faced in Kuala Selat. "BRGM really hopes that experts - especially from UNRI, can help prepare appropriate planning that not only covers biophysical aspects, but also social aspects, to manage the expanse of land affected by this sea flood," said Gatot. (rls. photo: ist)***