Exploring the complex interconnections between water access, inequality, and environmental challenges in Indonesia's capital
Jakarta presents one of the world's most stark urban paradoxes: a coastal city of nearly 30 million people that is simultaneously sinking and facing chronic water scarcity. Approximately 40% of Jakarta now lies below sea level, and predictive models suggest the entire city could be underwater by 2050 5 . Yet in this water-rich coastal environment, access to clean, reliable water remains severely limited and distributed highly unevenly across social and economic lines.
Jakarta is sinking at a rate of up to 20 cm annually in some areas, making it one of the fastest-sinking cities in the world.
Traditional approaches to understanding urban water systems—centered on centralized piped networks—fail to capture Jakarta's complex reality. This article explores how scholars are "worlding" water supply, moving beyond Northern-derived theoretical frameworks to develop new understandings that better reflect the experiences of Southern cities like Jakarta. Through this conceptual shift, researchers are revealing unexpected connections between water access, land subsidence, flooding, and inequality that demand fundamentally new approaches to urban water governance.
For decades, analysis of urban water inequalities has focused predominantly on piped water networks as both the problem and solution. Scholars, journalists, and activists often pinpoint Jakarta's centralized piped water system as the culprit behind water inequalities, describing it as the physical manifestation of social power relations that fragment the city and hardwire spatial inequality 4 .
"My population of 'thirsty poor' struggling for water justice in the face of global corporations did not exist, or not to the degree which I had thought. In fact, neither the very rich nor the very poor were connected to the recently privatized piped water supply" 2 .
This network-centric perspective emerges from European urban experiences where centralized piped systems historically provided virtually all urban water. However, this focus becomes problematic when applied uncritically to cities like Jakarta, where piped water has never served the majority of residents.
This realization represents what researcher Michelle Kooy terms a "productive paradox"—a contradiction between expected and observed reality that forces researchers to question their fundamental assumptions. The network-centric lens obscures more than it reveals in contexts where multiple water sources coexist and where ecological connections between different water flows generate distinct forms of fragmentation and inequality.
Jakarta's water landscape is characterized by diverse sourcing strategies that vary across income levels and neighborhoods. Rather than relying on a single source, households typically combine multiple water sources to meet their needs:
Serving approximately 40% of residents, primarily in richer neighborhoods and business districts.
Both shallow and deep wells, providing nearly two-thirds of the city's water consumption.
Now the most universally used supply in the city across all income groups.
Sold by private providers to unconnected households, often at higher costs.
This multiplicity of sources reveals why focusing solely on the piped network provides a distorted picture of water access. Interestingly, middle-income and lower-middle-income residents represent the largest consumer groups for both of Jakarta's water operators, while both the wealthiest and poorest residents often remain disconnected from the formal network 4 .
| Water Source | Approximate Percentage of Use | Primary User Groups | Key Challenges |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piped network | 40% | Middle-income residents | Intermittent supply, quality concerns |
| Shallow groundwater | Widespread | Urban poor | Contamination with wastewater and heavy metals |
| Deep groundwater | Extensive | Wealthy households, businesses | Over-extraction causing land subsidence |
| Bottled water | Nearly universal | All income groups | High per-unit cost, plastic waste |
| Vendor water | Significant | Unconnected households | Variable quality, higher costs |
The "worlding" approach to urban water supply emphasizes understanding the ecological connections between different water flows—piped water, groundwater, wastewater, and floodwater—and how these connections produce and reproduce social inequalities 1 . In Jakarta, these interconnections create vicious cycles that exacerbate both water insecurity and physical vulnerability.
Wealthy households and businesses extract deep groundwater, contributing to land subsidence 4 .
Ground sinks unevenly, altering flow paths for floodwaters and contaminants 5 .
Subsidence increases vulnerability to flooding during high tides and monsoon rains 4 .
Floodwaters contaminate shallow wells, forcing reliance on expensive alternatives 6 .
This cycle demonstrates how water inequalities extend far beyond access to include differential exposure to water-related hazards and contamination. As Furlong and Kooy argue: "Thinking beyond the network requires deeper engagement with the ecological connections between the diverse flows of water in and around urban environments" 1 .
Understanding Jakarta's groundwater dynamics presents substantial challenges. Traditional monitoring requires extensive networks of wells and measurement stations, which are difficult to maintain and often incomplete. To overcome this, scientists have turned to space-based technologies that can indirectly measure changes in groundwater storage across large areas 5 .
As the GRACE-FO satellites pass over regions with greater mass concentration, the increased gravitational pull causes minute changes in the distance between them.
Scientists convert distance measurements into estimates of total Terrestrial Water Storage (TWS).
By subtracting estimates of surface water, soil moisture, and snow/ice, researchers isolate changes in groundwater storage.
Repeated measurements over time allow scientists to track changes in groundwater storage.
GRACE-FO data have revealed alarming patterns of groundwater depletion in the Jakarta region. A recent study comparing monthly data throughout 2020 showed significantly lower groundwater availability during January and February, with somewhat higher levels during the remainder of the year 5 . This seasonal pattern reflects both consumption patterns and recharge cycles, but the overall trend shows a steady decline in groundwater reserves.
GRACE-FO measurements show Jakarta's deep aquifers are being extracted at rates far exceeding natural replenishment, with some requiring hundreds of years to recharge fully 5 .
| Parameter | Specification | Significance for Water Monitoring |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit type | Low Earth orbit (~490 km altitude) | Provides global coverage including remote regions |
| Spatial resolution | ~200,000 km² | Suitable for regional-scale assessment |
| Measurement precision | ~1 micron (distance change) | Detects minute gravitational variations |
| Temporal resolution | Monthly changes | Tracks seasonal and interannual patterns |
| Primary measurement | Inter-satellite distance changes | Converts to mass concentration variations |
Understanding complex urban water systems like Jakarta's requires multidisciplinary approaches and diverse methodological tools. Researchers in this field employ several crucial methods and technologies:
GRACE-FO, satellite imagery for tracking groundwater changes, land subsidence, and surface water contamination 5 .
Standardized methods for detecting biological contamination and chemical pollutants in various water sources 3 .
Mapping and analyzing distribution of water sources, contamination patterns, and infrastructure access.
Precise measurement of land elevation changes using satellite-based radar interferometry and GPS stations 5 .
| Parameter | Typical Methods | Significance in Jakarta Context |
|---|---|---|
| E. coli presence | Culture-based tests, PCR | Indicates fecal contamination from inadequate sanitation |
| Heavy metals (Pb, Hg, etc.) | Atomic absorption spectroscopy | Indicates industrial pollution in water sources |
| Salinity | Electrical conductivity measurement | Indicates saltwater intrusion in coastal aquifers |
| Nitrates | Colorimetric assays | Suggests contamination from fertilizers or wastewater |
| Turbidity | Light scattering measurements | Indicates particulate matter, often higher after flooding events |
The "worlding" approach to urban water supply has profound implications for how we address water challenges in Jakarta and similar cities:
Traditional responses to urban water crises have focused on technical solutions—expanding pipeline networks, building treatment plants, or constructing massive infrastructure projects like Jakarta's proposed sea wall. While such interventions may be necessary, they are insufficient without addressing the socio-ecological connections between different water flows and their differential impacts across population groups 7 .
Effective solutions require integrated approaches that:
International human rights law recognizes water as a fundamental human right. However, limitations on groundwater extraction must be accompanied by viable alternatives and safeguards to ensure that restrictions do not disproportionately burden already marginalized communities 6 .
Jakarta's experience offers crucial lessons for other cities facing similar challenges:
Rather than relying exclusively on centralized systems, develop hybrid approaches that integrate centralized and decentralized solutions.
Recognize that water flows are interconnected—management of one source affects others.
Implement monitoring and regulation of groundwater extraction while addressing the needs that drive reliance on wells.
Design policies that acknowledge and redress differential vulnerabilities across population groups.
Jakarta's water story represents both a warning and an opportunity. The city exemplifies how uncritical application of Northern-derived urban theories and solutions can exacerbate rather than resolve water challenges. Yet it also pioneers new ways of understanding urban water systems that emphasize ecological connections, diverse practices, and the need for context-specific approaches.
The concept of "worlding" water supply—developing theories grounded in the specific experiences of Southern cities—promises not only to improve water governance in cities like Jakarta but to enrich urban theory globally. By moving beyond the network to understand the complex socio-ecological politics of water, researchers and practitioners can develop more equitable, sustainable, and effective approaches to urban water challenges.
As Jakarta confronts the potentially existential threat of subsidence and sea level rise, the need for these new approaches has never been more urgent. The city's experience reminds us that in water governance, as in so many domains, the most sophisticated solutions often emerge from attentiveness to local context and the willingness to learn from paradoxes and surprises rather than imposing predetermined frameworks.