ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE

Tangerang's creeping shoreline

Not so long ago, the residents of four village on the north coast of Tangerang municipality lived off the bounty of the sea. But the same sea has taken away their shrimp breeding farms and their homes. One day, perhaps, it will claim entire neighborhoods. The municipality is exhausting its sand for construction. The shoreline has collapsed, creeping closer to houses. With no coastal barriers to bear the brunt of impacts from storms and erosion, concrete ruins are all that is left of people's homes. The residents' demands for action from the local administration to stop the sand mining and help them reclaim their land have apparently been lost in the wind. Multa Fidrus