Community Participation in River Basin Management

Abstract

River basin management can increase biodiversity conservation, land productivity, ecosystem restoration, rehabilitation, and land reclamation. River basin management cannot be handled by one institution alone but requires cooperation and coordination with various parties. Community involvement in river basin management has a strategic role and is carried out based on the principle of sustainability that combines a balance between productivity and conservation to achieve river basin management goals. Community participation has the power to make decisions autonomously in order to be able to solve the needs and interests of life and improve the standard of living by utilizing the resources that must be owned. In addition, it is also necessary to harmonize structural relationships between institutions in government both at the center and at the local level so that internal factors can be controlled, and programs and activities do not overlap in the management of natural resources and air. One of the impacts of climate change is the occurrence of river basin damage. Upstream river basins as buffer areas, water catchments, and sources of water filters will be damaged. Sensitive people will be more vulnerable, while people who can adapt will survive.

1. Introduction

Community empowerment in the management of river basins is getting more and more attention, as seen by the number of authors who state the importance of community participation and independence in river basin management [1]. Several researchers have developed a transdisciplinary, scientific, and explicit-scale watershed system model jointly designed by the multidisciplinary community [2]. The authors put a massive water reform program into effect, which resulted in considerable institutional, social, and economic changes. Policies must be enforced around a scientific basis, with a management focus on incorporating new knowledge [3]. Other authors proposed that for watershed management, direct community participation for conservation, and overcoming the risk of watershed damage are required [4] coordination and consultation between stakeholders for each policy [5].

Community empowerment is an effort to enable and empower the community to complete the needs and interests of their lives and improve their standard of living by utilizing the resources they have [6]. Thus, community empowerment emphasizes initiative and autonomy in decision-making by the community, therefore emphasizing the importance of the learning process in empowerment to equip the community towards sustainable change [7].

There are three important stages in the empowerment process, namely: the awareness stage, the stage of capacity building, which include increasing human, organizational, and value system capacities, and the empowerment stage, namely the granting of power, authority, or opportunity [8]. In the empowerment process, counseling and mentoring activities must be carried out. This is also stated in the articles on community empowerment in the laws and regulations relating to river basin management.

Mentoring and counseling are often seen as separate or distinct activities. In the past, counseling was only considered an effort to convey information and technology to the public. In its development, counseling is not only defined as a process of disseminating information and technology but also a non-formal education process, a capacity-building process, and a behavior change process so that people can help themselves, and improve their welfare [9], meaning that counseling is also a process of community empowerment. While mentoring means the existence of assistance from outside parties to increase public awareness and capacity to understand problems and look for alternative solutions to problems, so as to achieve sustainable development, empowerment, and community welfare. Thus, counseling and mentoring are activities that cannot be separated from the community empowerment process. Both are learning processes to increase community capacity which will continue throughout the community empowerment process. In addition, to achieve an empowered society, there are several efforts that also need attention, namely:

1. Creating an atmosphere that allows the potential of the community to develop. Community empowerment requires a strong commitment from the government and other related parties. These parties are required to create a supportive atmosphere or climate so that the potential of the community develops. Community participation must be encouraged as widely as possible through mentoring programs toward their independence.

2. Strengthening the potential of the community (empowering). This strengthening includes concrete steps and involves the provision of various inputs, as well as opening access to various opportunities that will make the community more empowered such as information, markets, and capital.

Apart from existing efforts, community participation is an important element in the process of community empowerment [8], because, without community participation, community empowerment efforts will not be achieved. In the community empowerment process, there are several typologies of participation as follows:

1. Manipulation, namely participation, is not based on individual participation but only on representation in groups and the community does not get any information.

2. Passive (receiving information) i.e., outsiders take decisions, and the public is only given information without a response from the community about the decision.

3. Consultation is community participation that is only consulted and answered; outsiders define problems oversee analysis, and make decisions, while the community does not take part in decision making.

4. Advices namely outsiders submit plans and ask for community feedback. If necessary, it will make changes to the plan by taking into account and considering the views of the community.

5. Functional (co-planning) is outside the temporary exhibition and discusses it with the community and provides the opportunity for the community to participate in final decision making.

6. Delegating power (interactive) i.e., external parties regarding identification and presentation of problems to the community, analyzing with the community for planning development, but decision making is carried out by the community, which means that decision making is local by the community.

7. Independent (self-mobilization): The community identifies problems and decides on goals and how to achieve them. Outside parties only act as assistants who provide information on the necessary resources and techniques, but the community has control over the use of resources [10].

Community empowerment is essentially about enabling and self-reliant communities so that more emphasis is placed on decision-making autonomy from a community group based on the resources they have [11]. Thus, community empowerment should place more emphasis on the process of positive change that occurs as well as the improvement and sustainability of community empowerment. In practice, many community empowerment activities are not in accordance with the concept of community empowerment. Community empowerment is often trapped in a “project” logic that emphasizes results and administrative responsibilities such as the size of the budget, the number of activities carried out, and the assistance provided [10]. Assistance makes community empowerment efforts tend to be participation mobilized by material incentives. Instead of creating community independence, it actually causes community dependence on the government and other outside parties.

This chapter aims to explain the current condition of the river basin and its conservation efforts under changing climate. River basin conservation requires community participation and the implementation of its empowerment in river basin management under changing climate, both individually and institutionally.

2. River basin conservation under changing climate

The river basin conservation can be achieved if every activity is carried out based on the principle of sustainability that combines a balance between productivity and conservation to achieve the river basin management goal of improving water management; improving soils; controlling land degradation processes; increasing farmers’ income; and encouraging the community towards conservation activities that control runoff and flooding [12].

Broadly speaking, the river basin system can be divided into three parts, namely upstream, middle, and downstream. The upstream river basin ecosystem is very important in the river basin system because it functions as an overall river basin protection system. The upstream area is characterized as a rural ecosystem with four main components, namely: villages, cropland, rivers, and forests. Thus, upstream river basin management is not only to maintain the river basin function but also to improve livelihoods and improve the economy of local communities sustainably [13]. It emphasizes that the balance between meeting the needs of local communities and preserving natural resources is a prerequisite for achieving the goals of sustainable river basin management. The strategy that is seen as an approach to community participation in river basin management in community-based natural resource management is known as Community-Based Natural Resource Management. This approach began to develop in the late 1990s, along with the passing of the era of decentralization and democracy.

The rapid increase in population and economic development activities in the river basin causes changes in land use and very high use of fossil fuels. These two activities are the largest sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the river basin. The continuous increase in GHG emissions causes global warming, which affects the climate in the river basin.

Global GHG emissions are projected to peak between 2020 and at the latest before 2025 in global modeled pathways that limit warming to 1.5°C (>50%) with no or limited overshoot and in those that limit warming to 2°C (>67%) and assume immediate action [14]. Global warming is a problem that humans must face now and is no longer a future problem. This event impacts the long-term accumulation of atmospheric pollution due to human activities, causing the release of GHG into the atmosphere at a very high rate which then impacts climate and the environment. Climatic events such as floods, long droughts, and strong winds have been happening more frequently lately with high intensity [15]. This incident is increasingly causing a greater impact with the high level of environmental damage.

Global warming caused by GHG has affected the world’s climate. IPCC (2001) in Climate change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability: Contribution of Working Group II to the third assessment report of the 74 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that climate change refers to the variation in the average climatic conditions of a place or its statistically significant variability over a long period of time, at least 30 years. It is further said that over the last 100 years (1906-2005), the earth’s average surface temperature has risen by about 0.74°C, with greater warming on land than in the oceans.

Climate change has positive and negative impacts on all sectors of human life. However, most of the impacts are negative. To assess the impacts of climate change, it is necessary to estimate how the climate is changing at local and regional levels and how these changes affect ecosystems and human life. Most scientists use Global Circulation Models (GCMs). GCMs have been used to assess the impact of climate change on all sectors of life in Indonesia.

Climate change, especially temperature and rainfall, causes changes in discharge fluctuations in the river basin. For example, in Indonesia, it shows an increase in temperature of around 0.1^oC–0.5^oC in 2010 and in 2070 around 0.4^oC–3.0^oC, while globally there is an increase in temperature between 0.6^oC–1.7^oC by 2030 and 1.0^oC–1.7^oC by 2070. Naylor et al. have projected that until 2050 April, May, and June, there will be an increase in rainfall in Central Java, while in July, August, and September, the conditions are projected to be extraordinarily dry [16].

Changes in debit fluctuations in the river basin that are getting higher greatly affect the lives of people in the river basin. Sensitive communities will respond to this condition and cause an increase in community vulnerability in the river basin. However, people who have the ability to adapt will survive with changes or hydrological conditions in this river basin. The sensitivity and adaptability of the community can be assessed from five aspects of life, namely: physical/technology, social/institutional, economic, human resources, and nature.

The level of community vulnerability is influenced by the amount of exposure, the sensitivity of the community, and the adaptability of the community. The higher the exposure and sensitivity of the community, the higher the level of community vulnerability will be. Meanwhile, the higher the adaptability, the lower the level of community vulnerability. In other words, the level of vulnerability is a positive function of community exposure and sensitivity and a negative function of the community’s adaptive capacity.

The impact of climate change will occur slowly and continuously. Therefore, adaptation to climate change is very important. One of them is using nature, especially River Basin ecosystems, as one of the adaptation strategies to climate change. River Basin is an area bounded by a ridge that drains water from upstream to downstream. The river basin is divided into upstream, middle, and downstream areas, so the river basin has the function of regulating the hydrological, economic, ecological, and social aspects of an ecosystem.

Based on the results of a search on the International Disaster Database, 345 natural disasters fall into the global disaster category. Around 60% of these disasters are natural disasters due to extreme climate events such as floods, droughts, forest fires, strong winds/storms, landslides, high tidal waves, and outbreaks of disease [15]. This finding is in line with the results of a study by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [17] that global warming will increase the frequency and intensity of extreme climate events.

For example, extreme climate events in Indonesia are often associated with the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon. There is a strong correlation between ENSO incidence and rainfall variability in Indonesia, namely long dry spells in El Niño years and far above normal rainfall in La Niña years [15]. Global warming will impact increasing the incidence of droughts and floods. Besides that, the beginning of the season and the length of the season will also shift.

Naylor et al. found an effect of global warming on seasonal changes in Java. Their research showed that areas south of the equator would experience a decrease in rainfall while those north of the equator will experience an increase in rainfall. The results of the projections of Naylor et al. showed that in the next 40 years, global warming would cause the beginning of the rainy season in Central Java to experience a setback with rainfall that tends to fall, while the end of the rainy season will be faster with rainfall that tends to increase. This has implications for the increasing risk of drought in the dry season and the risk of flooding or landslides in the rainy season. WWF Annual Review 2007: A watershed year states that the change in the distribution of rainfall causes various potential natural disasters triggered by rainfall to become higher, such as floods, landslides, overflowing rivers, and the spread of disease vectors, while in conditions of reduced rainfall, potential disasters such as drought, crop failure, lack of clean water, and various social problems that may arise.

River Basins provide natural resources that offer many benefits to the surrounding population, including agricultural resources, clean water sources, freshwater fisheries resources, and other water uses. Various community activities along the river basin affect the quality and quantity of the river basin. In addition, the issue of climate change has exacerbated the condition of the River Basin. The increase in temperature and rainfall affects the hydrological conditions of the River Basin.

River Basin degradation causes ecosystems to not optimally provide functions and services that are very important for human life. This condition causes a decrease in the level of community welfare and increases the level of community vulnerability. Community vulnerability is a condition of society that cannot adapt to changes in the ecosystem caused by a certain threat [18]. Vulnerability is a function of three components: exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity (IPCC 2001). The main impact of climate change is the level of community welfare in the upstream, middle and downstream areas.

The shift of seasons in the River Basin area impacts agricultural activities by the community. Agriculture that relies on water supply from the River Basin is done in an ineffective and unprofitable way. The unpredictable climate is also one of the reasons the rice fields are not productive. Water production at some points decreased and even disappeared. The number of dangerous and vulnerable areas has increased. Landslides have increased in the last 2 years [15]. The increasingly critical upstream River Basin degradation causes the River Basin not optimally to provide its functions and services for the community. Upstream River Basins as buffer zones, water catchments, sources of water filters, and carbon sinks will be damaged. Consequently, it will lose water supply and in the rainy season will result in flooding. In a matter of years, this region will become critical. Sensitive people will be more vulnerable, while people who can adapt will survive. Based on these conditions, it is necessary to study the level of community vulnerability to climate change in the upstream River Basin. The existence of climate change and River Basin damage that occurs in the upstream River Basin requires an adaptation strategy. River Basin-based adaptation strategies are important considering that River Basins are providers of ecosystem services for the sustainability of upstream River Basin functions.

3. Law enforcement and institutional arrangements for integrated river basin management

Natural resources and the environment must be maintained to avoid environmental damage or environmental disasters so that development and environmental sustainability can run synergistically. One of the uses of natural resources which is also used for environmental conservation is river basin management.

The utilization of natural resources in river basins can have positive and negative impacts for various purposes. The positive impact is indicated by an increase in economic growth and community welfare. The community can utilize the river basin for irrigation canals for agriculture, excavation of soil and sand that can be used for building materials, tourism objects, and many other benefits. The negative impact is a decrease in the quality and quantity of the river basin environment caused by sediment sourced from erosion and industrial waste caused by densely populated slums. Besides that, another negative impact is the continuous excavation of soil and sand to form basins in the river. River basins that can damage the shape of the land and facilitate landslides, especially on the left and right of the river and riverbed, become rougher. It can increase the erosion and carrying capacity of the river. These negative impacts can change the condition of rivers and river basin ecosystems.

The complexity of the problems of the artificial environment along the river basin requires multidimensional and comprehensive problem-solving. One of the determining factors for the success of efforts to solve these problems is the participation of all levels of society. At this time, community involvement in environmental management along the river basin, from the planning, and implementation to monitoring stages, is still relatively low due to:

1. Understanding the low level of awareness and the problems of the artificial environment.

2. The weak role of social institutions and the business world in supporting the artificial environment management program.

3. Limited community income causes participation capacity to be not optimal.

Furthermore, there seems to be no awareness that actions taken in one river basin will be linked to what happens in another. The level of community education is one aspect that determines the extent to which people have environmental concerns on a wider scale than the environment in which they live.

There are river basin sustainability problems related to the community’s social conditions around the river basin and the management of the river basin itself institutionally. A comprehensive, integrated river basin approach requires open management that ensures the continuity of the coordination process between related institutions. In addition, it is also necessary to consider the importance of community participation in river basin management, starting from planning, policy formulation, implementation, and utilization. River basin planning cannot be carried out alone through a sectoral approach. Still, there must be inter-sectoral linkages both in the planning of the state revenue and expenditure budget, work programs, and coordination of implementation. In addition, there are social factors that influence river basin management, including population density, conservation behavior, customary law, traditional values, institutions, and a culture of cooperation or mutual cooperation.

The harmonization of structural relations between institutions in government in the era of regional autonomy, both at the central and local levels, was disrupted due to uncontrollable internal factors, such as sectoral egos and regional egos. This is further complicated by the imbalance in the potential of natural resources and the financial condition of each region. The reality on the ground shows that governmental institutions have overlapping programs and activities in managing natural and water resources.

The reasons behind River Basin management regulations include national economic development, which is carried out based on the principles of sustainable development and a sound environment. The spirit of regional autonomy in governance has brought about changes in the relationship and authority between the central government and regional governments, especially in the field of environmental protection and management.

For example, in Indonesia, having Law Number 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management, it is expected that the use of natural resources must be in harmony and balance with environmental functions. Consequently, development policies, plans, and/or programs must be imbued with the obligation to preserve the environment and realize sustainable development goals included in the management of river basins. The Law of the Republic of Indonesia, Number 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management Article 70 paragraph (1) states that the community has the same and widest possible rights and opportunities to play an active role in environmental protection and management. In addition, based on the Government Regulation of the Republic of Indonesia Number 37 of 2012 concerning River basin Management Article 57, which states:

1. The community can participate in river basin management.

2. The participation of the community, as referred to in paragraph (1) can be carried out either individually or through a coordination forum for river basin management.

3. The river basin management coordination forum, as referred to in paragraph (2), assists in supporting the integrated implementation of river basin management.

Through these laws and regulations, the government gives comprehensive authority to regional governments in protecting and managing the environment in their respective regions.

The regulation provides space for the community to reduce the possibility of the community refusing to accept decisions. Providing access to information on environmental management is also an integral part of community participation in environmental management.

The purpose of community participation since the planning stage is to generate useful inputs and perceptions from citizens and interested communities to improve the quality of environmental decision-making. Because by involving potentially affected communities and interest groups, decision-makers can capture the views, needs, and expectations of these communities and groups and translate them into concepts. The views and reactions of the community, on the other hand, will help decision-makers determine priorities, interests, and positive directions from various factors.

The process of community participation must be open to the public; community participation will affect the credibility (accountability) of the agency concerned. By documenting the actions of this state agency’s decisions, to be able to provide a satisfactory means if the public and even the courts feel the need to examine the considerations that have been taken when making the decision, which in the end will be able to force the responsibility of the state agency for the activities it carries out.

Planning institutions that enable integrated or coordinated planning are important and necessary, including institutions for collecting and presenting data and information. The institution in question is the organization and regulation of the mechanism of the relationship between components within the organization and between related organizations. Establishing institutions does not always have to form new organizations but strengthening the role of existing organizations and clarifying relationships between existing organizations.

The main principle in river basin management, such as in Selat Village, Jambi Luar Kota Regency, is to synergize sectoral programs with river basin resource management objectives based on the issue of water resources in the river basin. As a framework for a working approach, every sectoral plan and activities of related parties need to be monitored by the competent authorities in responding to water resources issues and communicating with related parties to resolve problems that cause these issues to occur within an integrated river basin management framework.

Institutional arrangements determine how individuals interact with other individuals and between organizations and other organizations using river basins. This arrangement is important to ensure various stakeholders can accept that river basin management from their respective goals and interests. Three factors can be identified from this institutional arrangement, namely: coherence of interests and activities among stakeholders; strength of local institutions; and benefits to local communities within the river basin.

River basins can be managed well if their resource potential is high and social arrangements and external factors can create a good balance between incentives and controls. Communities will act in the context of rehabilitation and conservation of river basins if they can share the benefits of their actions.

To be able to realize the above-described river basin management, it must first be realized that the performance of river basin management is largely determined by the performance of many institutions/organizations, each of which has different interests, roles, and functions according to the sector, resource, and region.

The initial stage in the search for institutional innovation for integrated river basin management is initiating a dialogue process that aims to identify and, without concern, concepts, programs, and actions based on views in river basin management. In principle, the initiation process can be carried out by individuals or community groups, community organizations, local, regional and national NGOs, district, provincial, or national government agencies, or private institutions, either voluntarily or after a public mandate. Initiation by public institutions with main tasks and functions directly related to river basin resources is expected to maintain a continuous process so that river basin management objectives can be achieved through overall institutional strengthening. The dialog process is carried out in a participatory manner and should be facilitated by an independent facilitator who understands the context of integrated river basin management.

The participation process for integrated river basin management at the initiation stage encourages the formation of a collective decision-making mechanism that is oriented towards solving the main problems in the field, so it is necessary to apply a bottom-up approach to ensure its efficiency and effectiveness. The principles of various capacities, resolutions and building conventions need to be mutually agreed upon in every process implemented. Consensus building is the most effective method of decision-making in the integrated river basin management process. Although it takes a relatively long time and requires commitment, decisions are made based on a contributive approach (sharing capacity and resources) and are determined by mutual agreement. All participants are responsible for implementing any agreed decisions.

The final crystallization of the series of initiation processes is formulating an integrated river basin management plan that is still macro in nature but lays the foundation for establishing a solid social contract. Integrated river basin management planning starts with a basic information review, condition assessment, problem definition, priority setting, objective analysis, alternative analysis, and a joint plan.

If the above agreements/outcomes can be reached, the door for capacity building and division of roles of each involved institution/organization has been opened and can be followed up with efforts to operationalize all agreements through structuring better institutional relations and being accountable to the public, strengthening legal aspects and implementation at the program level. Every collective agreement must ultimately be adopted constitutionally/legally by the institution that has the authority.

Water and river basin management institutions are essentially a social construction that constantly changes and develops according to social and ecological evolution. The form of interaction and the direction of socio-ecological change is highly dependent on the dynamics of the interplay between social and ecosystem elements. In the process of change, there is a multi-way interaction between the river basin management system as the designer and decision-maker; members of the river basin management organization as the main stakeholders for the sustainable use of the river basin, and other ecological and social elements involved.

The concept of water and river basin management institutions includes formal and informal regulations, norms, cognitive bases, and structured symbolic systems to regulate use and distribution and determine the status of water resources within a community group. The concepts mentioned above can be broadly divided into aspects of policy, law, and administration, including formal and informal elements. Water law issues refer to the legal status of water, water rights, conflict resolution and mechanisms, possible conflicts between laws, legal diversity, and the presence or absence of administrative regulations to implement these laws. Policy aspects include the priority of use, cost, ability to decentralize or centralize, and participation and coordination with other policies. The administrative aspect is the organizational structure of water management, including financing, staffing, capacity, and fundraising.

4. Performance indicators and role of stakeholders in river basin management

Stakeholder collaboration and synergy are needed in river basin management to maintain the formalization and implementation of activities or programs that manipulate natural and human resources found in river basins to obtain production and service benefits without causing damage to water and soil resources. It is important to manage and allocate natural resources for river basins, including prevention of flooding and erosion, as well as protection of the aesthetic value associated with natural resources. River basin management should include strategies for identifying linkages between land use, land and water, and linkages between upstream and downstream areas of a river basin. River basin management needs to consider the social, economic, cultural, and institutional aspects operating within and outside the river basin concerned.

Ecosystems must be viewed holistically, namely by identifying the key components that make up the ecosystem and examining the interactions between these components. A holistic approach is carried out so that the utilization and conservation of natural resources can be carried out efficiently and effectively, which is a requirement for the realization of the use of natural resources for sustainable development. River basin management is one of the government’s authorities that can be decentralized based on authority and function. The form can refer to the division model, namely deconcentration, delegation to parastatal or semi-autonomous organizations, devolution, privatization, or transfer of affairs from the government to non-governmental institutions [19]. Successful intergroup performance is a function of a number of factors. The broader concept (umbrella concept) that overrides these factors is that the coordination of each of the following factors can affect coordination efforts.

To achieve sustainable river basin development, economic development activities and environmental protection must be harmonized. In this case, it is necessary to unify the two perspectives realistically by adjusting river basin management activities and conservation of upstream areas into economic and social realities. Therefore, it is necessary to know the respective roles of the parties who will collaborate in river basin management, and it is necessary to know how to identify performance indicators.

Stakeholders have the authority and responsibility in terms of managing natural resources around the river basin. Stakeholders are expected to contribute directly or indirectly to river basin management. There are five measurement indicators obtained based on the results of interviews and assessment of the performance scores of activities carried out by various stakeholders, namely:

1. Policy Determination: The role of Stakeholders has a policy in determining the target of activities in the river basin ranging from central policies to regional policies. This policy determines the sustainability of the criteria in river basin management.

2. Activity Goals and Objectives: Each stakeholder must have a set of goals and objectives for activities in the river basin that cannot be contradictory so that the goals and objectives of river basin management can be achieved. Case in point: the Agriculture Service may not clear agricultural and plantation land in the upstream area; the upstream area should be managed by the Forestry Service.

3. Activity Planning: In planning river basin management activities, all stakeholders must be involved in planning activities to establish good coordination and cooperation between stakeholders. These good coordination and cooperation are because each stakeholder has a clear job description.

4. Implementation of Activities: Implementation of activities must be in accordance with the plan of activities that can benefit the community, such as in the development of agriculture, plantations, and animal husbandry. The successful implementation of this activity occurs when each stakeholder collaborates and synergizes in river basin management.

5. Activity Monitoring and Evaluation: This activity must be carried out regularly periodically so that weaknesses in river basin management can be addressed immediately.

5. Conclusions

Based on the description above, it can be concluded:

1. Community empowerment in river basin management must have the power to make decisions autonomously so that community participation has a major role. The current condition is that community empowerment is still consultation participation and participation mobilized by incentives.

2. There is a need for harmonization of structural relationships between institutions in government both at the central and local levels so that internal factors can be controlled, and programs and activities do not overlap in the management of natural resources and water.

3. River basin management starting from upstream, middle, and downstream, needs to involve stakeholders in order to build an integrated river basin management pattern in collaboration and synergy of stakeholders. So that through this river basin, management will create biodiversity conservation, increase land productivity, ecosystem restoration, rehabilitation, and land reclamation.

Acknowledgments

We express our deepest gratitude to the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at the Sultan Agung Islamic University, who has greatly supported our research costs, and also we do not forget to express our gratitude to all our Doctoral friends in environmental science at Diponegoro University who have discussed and provided input on our writing.