The Daily Telegraph, 7/2/2007, p.7

Source: Erisk Net 

Climate change blamed for Jakarta floods

February 7, 2007 – 8:19PM

Climate change has contributed to extreme weather conditions that triggered the worst flooding in the Indonesian capital in years, a deputy environment minister said.

The floods that have submerged huge areas in Jakarta and its surroundings since last week have killed 50 people and displaced hundreds of thousands.

"It’s a natural phenomenon affected by climate change. It’s been made worse by negligent behaviour," said Masnellyarty Hilman, a deputy environment minister in charge of drafting a national strategy to deal with climate change.

She said warmer seas had heated up monsoon winds that carry moisture from the ocean to the land, leading to extra heavy rain.

Full story at The Sydney Morning Herald 

Trucks belonging to a state-owned oil and gas company line up to fill their tanks at a flooded fuel terminal in Jakarta February 7, 2007. A lull in the recent torrential rains meant the waters had receded in some parts of Jakarta, but water levels remained high in some areas however, and some new flooding was also reported.

Source: Reuters Alert  

Over 50 people killed in Jakarta floods

Xinhua

Jakarta, February 7, 2007

The massive floods that hit the Indonesian capital and its surrounding areas have claimed more than 50 lives and displaced some 263,000 residents in the last six days, a health ministry official said on Wednesday.

Days of lashing rain have caused widespread flooding, the worst in five years, and put about 75 per cent of Jakarta under water.

Most of the deaths have occurred in east Jakarta, where 16 people drowned to death or were killed in flood-related accidents, including electrocutions, said Rustam Pakaya, head of the crisis management centre.

Thousands of residents have taken refuge along railroads, under flyovers and even in cemeteries in west and north Jakarta to seek safety.

Full story at Hindustan Times 

Jakarta cries a river

By Bill Guerin

The figures show the scale of this disaster. Using the simple parameter of flooded house equals victim, North Jakarta has reported 94,000 victims, West Jakarta 84,000, and East Jakarta 37,000. The elite areas of South Jakarta and Central Jakarta have so far reported only 17,867 and 1,591 victims, respectively. So far, since the onset on the evening of January 23, the floods have claimed at least 15 lives. At least 233,000 Jakartans are directly affected and millions more indirectly affected by the ensuing traffic jams, while 55,000 flood victims currently need immediate relief aid.

Full story at Online Asia Times

Jakarta flood toll: 50 dead and 200,000 homeless 

Floods that have crippled much of Indonesia’s capital and killed at least 50 people worsened on 4 February, inundating scores of districts and leaving over 200,000 people homeless, reported The Advertiser (5/2/2007, p.25).

Jakarta river banks burst: Overnight rains caused more rivers to burst their banks across Jakarta, sending muddy water up to 3m deep into more residential and commercial areas in the city of 12 million people.

Jakarta on highest alert: "Jakarta is now on the highest alert level," said Sihar Simanjuntak, an official monitoring water levels at key rivers. Two days of incessant rain over Jakarta and hills to its south triggered the city’s worst floods in recent memory on Friday.

Disease danger as power cut, water supplies shut down: Now there are fears the floods will result in a disease epidemic. The waters have so far inundated more than 20,000 homes, schools and hospitals, forcing authorities to cut off electricity and water supplies.

Fifty  dead; 200,000 homeless: Dr Rustam Pakaya, from the health ministry’s crisis centre, said 50 people in Jakarta and surrounding towns had died by 4 February evening. About 200,000 had been made homeless.

The Advertiser, 5/2/2007, p.25

Source: Erisk Net 

A National Plan For Water Security. The Hon John Howard MP Prime Minister 25 January 2007 http://www.pm.gov.au/news/speeches/speech2341.html

7/2/2007

Source: Erisk Net 

That would contribute to an overall target of 120 g/km by 2012 compared to current levels of roughly 163 g/km.

Use of biofuels, efficient air conditioners, and gear shift indicators would help contribute the 10 g/km that does not come from cleaner engines.

Environmentalists criticised the Commission for not putting the full burden on car companies to make the cut to 120 g/km.

The European auto manufacturers’ lobby said the new targets were arbitrary, too severe, and damaging to the economy.

Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas says the rules are essential to meet the bloc’s Kyoto commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 8 per cent by 2012 from 1990 levels.

Road transport contributes roughly one-fifth of the EU’s CO2 emissions. Passenger cars account for 12 per cent.

Competition distortion?

Mr Verheugen says the rules aim to reduce emissions without making European automakers less competitive.

The EU would expect bigger cuts from high-polluting, larger cars, whose producers could absorb cost increases more easily, he says, adding Brussels never intended to set a uniform limit for all vehicle types.

Manufacturers of small and medium-sized cars in Spain and Britain were at greatest risk from global competitors and would have a harder time dealing with higher costs, he says.

This will be taken into account in the new rules.

The Commission strategy paper says legislation will be framed to "ensure competitively neutral reduction targets that are equitable to the diversity of the European automobile manufacturers".

Mr Verheugen and Mr Dimas acknowledge the measures could lead to higher car prices but say consumers will recoup the cost over time in lower fuel bills.

EU presidency-holder Germany had expressed concern that such laws would unfairly penalise its industry, which specialises in larger premium automobiles, but welcomed the compromise, which came after weeks of battling within the Commission over how big a burden to place on the auto industry.

European carmakers are set to miss a voluntary pledge to reduce the average CO2 output from new cars to 140 grams per km by 2008, a fact which created momentum for binding targets.

"We are very disappointed that the industry isn’t sticking to the goals it has itself set. The road to hell is paved with good intentions," German Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee said on German television, endorsing binding limits.

The European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) says the Commission’s strategy is not the most effective way to fight climate change.

"The proposals are unbalanced and damaging to the European economy in terms of wealth, employment and growth potential," it said in a statement.

But manufacturers such as France’s Peugeot Citroen and Germany’s Audi and BMW say they are working hard to produce low-emission cars.

Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration. He was Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal editorial page and Contributing Editor of National Review. He is coauthor of The Tyranny of Good Intentions.

Reference: Jay Rutovitz, Renewable Energy Policy Officer, Nature Conservation Council of NSW (NCC), 2/301 Kent Street, Sydney NSW 2000. Phone: (02) 9279 2466. Email: jrutovitz@nccnsw.org.au Document is available at: http://www.emissionstrading.net.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/5361/Nature_Conservation_Council_ofNSW.pdf

Erisk Net, 29/1/2007