Eko Listiyorini – Indonesia will limit ground water use to conserve water supply and halt land subsidence that already plagues its capital Jakarta.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry will require households using more than 100 cubic meters of water a month to hold permits, Muhammad Wafid, acting head of the ministry's geology agency, said on Monday. Most families use only about 30 cubic meters a month.
"We don't want out-of-control water usage," as it will cause land subsidence which has been recorded in many areas across the northern coast of Java, he said.
The move is meant to ensure future generations would still have access to ground water and to prevent further sinking of cities like the capital, which has seen some areas sink as much as 4 meters between 1997 to 2005. Jakarta's plight is one of the key reasons for President Joko Widodo's plan to move the administrative seat to a new capital in the heart of Borneo island.
In about three years, the government will also start imposing penalties for those who use ground water without permit. Farmers who aren't linked to irrigation systems are still exempted from the permit requirement as long as they use less than 2 liters a second per family, Wafid added.
The limits may still change depending on ongoing talks with stakeholders, he said.