Indonesia’s Java is sinking: Coastal communities face displacement

CENTRAL JAVA, Indonesia (MNTV) – Across the world, coastal communities face the growing threat of climate change, but in Indonesia’s Java, the crisis is unfolding at an alarming pace.

Entire villages and urban neighborhoods are vanishing as land sinks and the sea advances, leaving thousands displaced and livelihoods destroyed.

Rasjoyo, a 38-year-old fisherman, can only watch in silence as his small wooden boat glides through what was once Semonet, a quiet fishing village on Java’s northern coast. The land where he lived, farmed, and fished no longer exists.

Over the past two decades, the coastline here has retreated 1.5 kilometers inland, submerging 54 homes and hundreds of hectares of rice fields and fish farms. Once a thriving community, Semonet is now a deserted, waterlogged wasteland.

“We had everything here,” Rasjoyo told Channel News Asia.

“We caught crabs in the morning, tended our fish ponds at noon, and picked fruits and flowers in the afternoon. Life was good.”

Semonet’s fate is not unique. Across Java’s northern coastline, land subsidence, coastal abrasion, and rising sea levels are swallowing communities at an alarming rate.

Some areas have lost more than 2 kilometres of land in the past 20 years, causing mass displacement and economic losses worth millions of dollars.

While coastal erosion is also observed along Sumatra’s eastern shores and Borneo’s southern coast, Java is experiencing the most severe impacts.

The island, home to 56% of Indonesia’s 280 million people, is sinking faster than any other region due to its soft, unconsolidated soil.

Unlike Java’s rockier southern terrain, the northern coast is built on loose sediments, making it highly vulnerable to sinking.

Major cities like Jakarta, Pekalongan, and Semarang are subsiding at rates ranging from 1 cm to 26 cm per year. Over-extraction of groundwater is accelerating the process, causing the land to compact and sink.

Large cities have the financial resources to build protective infrastructure. Jakarta, for example, has begun constructing sea walls and artificial islands to shield itself from rising waters.

Pekalongan and Semarang have also launched flood prevention measures.

However, smaller communities like Semonet lack such support. Local governments often opt for relocation rather than investing in costly sea defences, leaving villages to disappear beneath the waves.

“Authorities prioritize moving residents to safer ground instead of spending millions on protective measures,” said Heri Andreas, a land subsidence expert from Indonesia’s Bandung Institute of Technology.

Sinking city of Pekalongan

Just 7 kilometres east of Semonet, the industrial city of Pekalongan is fighting a losing battle against the sea.

The city, home to 300,000 people, has long depended on groundwater, as nearby rivers are polluted by hundreds of batik dyeing factories. But over-extraction has caused the land to sink by up to 22 cm per year.

If the trend continues, experts warn that by 2035, 90% of Pekalongan could be below sea level.

For residents like Nur Fatmawati, the changes are dramatic. When she bought her home in 2018, the sea was 1.2 km away, separated by mangrove forests and rice fields.

Today, the water has consumed entire neighborhoods, leaving her home partially submerged.

“Tidal floods are getting worse. Inside my house, the water reaches up to here,” she said, resting her hand on her stomach. “That’s inside. You can imagine what it’s like outside.”

Indonesia’s government has acknowledged the crisis, but solutions remain limited. Some cities are building barriers, while others are considering large-scale relocations.

For now, coastal communities across Java can only watch as their land disappears beneath the rising sea.