Flood that hit Puncak Bogor area in West Java following high intensity rainfalls has disrupted activities and damaged infrastructure in some areas, while its impact spread to Jakarta and Bekasi City due to the overflowing of Ciliwung River, Bekasi River, and Cisadane River, a finding by Forest Watch Indonesia (FWI) reveals.

FWI finding also reveals that the environmental disaster was caused by deforestation in three main river upstreams covering an area of 2,300 hectares, with the loss of forest function as water and soil conservation being one of the main causes of the increasing risk of flooding. 

FWI Forest Campaigner, Tsabit Khairul Auni, said that forests play a significant role in absorbing rainwater and reducing surface flow (run-off). However, land conversion in the area accelerates water runoff into rivers, which ultimately triggers flooding in various areas.

"Massive land conversion into built-up land, such as villas, tourist attractions, and other supporting infrastructure, is worsening the condition. Rainwater cannot be properly absorbed into the soil, thus accelerating flooding,” Tsabit told Indonesia Business Post on Tuesday, March 11, 2025.

FWI noted that in the 2017–2023 period, around 310 hectares of natural forest in Megamendung and Cisarua sub-districts had been damaged. Of that amount, 208.76 hectares had been converted into plantations, 26.64 hectares into built-up land, and 75.33 hectares into open land. 

Meanwhile, the remaining forest area in the Ciliwung Watershed is only 14 percent, Bekasi River 4 percent, and Cisadane River 21 percent. This figure is far below the minimum requirement of 30 percent of the watershed area that must be a forest area as mandated in Law No.41/1999 on Forestry.

FWI member, Anggi Putra Prayoga, pointed at the spatial planning policy that also accelerated land conversion. Bogor Regency Administration Bylaw No. 1/2024 on the Bogor Regency Spatial Planning (RTRW) has recorded a significant reduction in protected areas compared to previous regulations.

"This change allows for freer development, including in water catchment areas such as tea plantations in the Puncak area which have now been transformed into tourist and residential areas," he said.

One concrete example is the "Hibisc Fantasy Puncak" tourist attraction, which was established on a former water catchment area. According to Anggi, this policy shows that forests are no longer prioritized as a life support system, but rather as a commodity that is exploited.

In response to this condition, FWI called for stricter forest protection policies to prevent increasingly severe ecological disasters. If the rate of deforestation continues, the risk of flooding and environmental disasters in Jakarta and its buffer zone areas is predicted to increase in the future.