Indonesia Considers New Capital as Jakarta Sinks
As sea levels rise and flooding threatens the foundations on which the city was built, the Indonesian capital of Jakarta is literally sinking into the sea. Now the president is pushing a plan to find a new home for the country's capital.
"Choked with traffic and garbage, the city on the northwest Java coast has been pushed to breaking point as its population surges above 12 million and its foundations sink under the weight of rampant development.
Floods displace thousands of people and cause millions of dollars of damage every year, and are predicted to get worse with rising sea levels, unchecked logging in catchment areas and the blocking of canals with rubbish."
The idea is nothing new. Previous presidents have proposed moving the capital, foreseeing a time when demographic and environmental pressures would make life in crowded Jakarta unsustainable.
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Published on Monday, February 22, 2010 in
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