Ministry of Social Affairs Prepares 1 Million Mangrove Seeds to Anticipate Megathrust

KEBUMEN (November 19, 2020) - The government is getting more serious in dealing with the potential threat of earthquakes in the Megathrust zone. Various disaster mitigation efforts continue to be carried out in the southern coastal areas of the island of Java. The Megathrust threat, which is predicted to cause a tsunami with a wave height of 20 meters, has prompted the Ministry of Social Affairs together with the relevant Ministries and Institutions to intensively plant mangroves.

Director of Social Protection for Victims of Natural Disasters (PSKBA) of the Ministry of Social Affairs, M. Safii Nasution, during a review of mangrove forests in the Logending Beach area, Ayah District, Kebumen Regency, said his party was preparing at least one million mangrove seedlings to be planted in five provinces located in the southern coast of Java Island starting from Banten, West Java, Central Java, DIY, and East Java.

"We, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, together with BNPB and Kopassus, are preparing one million mangrove seedlings to be planted in five provinces on the southern coast of Java," said Safii.

We, he continued, do not know when the Megathrust will occur, but at least we have prepared the community, prepared the nature. According to him, this was done so that if a Megathrust occurred, the impact would not be large.

"The existence of mangrove forests in coastal areas is effective enough to block or at least reduce ocean waves such as tsunamis," he explained. Because, said Safii, with the supporting roots that grow tightly and wide, the mangroves will work like a net.

Several studies have stated that the presence of mangroves is estimated to reduce the height of the tsunami by up to 50 percent. "For this reason, the actions of planting mangrove seedlings in coastal areas must continue to be encouraged," he said.

Safii added that besides being useful for reducing tsunamis, mangrove plants also have a high economic impact for fishermen.

This is because the mangrove forest can be a gathering place for fish that are the target of fishermen. "This mangrove, we know, is not only a disaster mitigation, but also the economic impact on the community is very large," he added.

For this reason, Safii said, a coordination meeting held with five provinces (Banten, West Java, Central Java, DIY, and East Java) agreed on anticipatory steps to reduce major disasters from the coast. "We agreed that we must do something in anticipation of a Megathrust," said Safii.

Later, mangrove planting will be carried out jointly by all existing elements, from Disaster Preparedness Cadets (Tagana) personnel, volunteers, communities, to parties in charge of handling disasters.