Greater Jakarta is a living and breathing cityscape that sprawls over several provinces and is home for more than 30 million people. This city’s water consumption is 1 billion m3/year.
Where does Jakarta’s water come from?
Gunung Gede Pangrango National Park, located about 80 km from the city, is the sources of the water for Greater Jakarta. The National Park is one of the oldest parks in Indonesia and was also declared as Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. It has been estimated that the 60 more rivers flowing from the park provide water worth US$1.5 billion for domestic and agricultural uses.
It is one of the examples of the potential role of protected areas in helping to maintain water supply to major cities. More reference about forest protected areas for water supply can be found in this research report by the World Bank/WWF Alliance for Forest Conservation and Sustainable Use.
Richard Jeo's blog 