Welcome! My name is Wim Smits (22) and I am a Bachelor student of Civil Engineering at the University of Twente. This summer I am going to write a thesis for Witteveen+Bos on the implementation of polders in Indonesia. This thesis will be done based on research on a pilot polder project in Semarang. With this blog I will try to keep you informed on the developments of my research and my findings during my stay abroad.

I will be staying in Indonesia for 11 weeks. During this period I will be working at the main office in Jakarta as well as on the project –site in Semarang. The goal of my research is to design a strategic planning model for the implementations of polders in Indonesia. This requires a lot of insights on the social context of, and decision-making in Indonesia. I hope to gain these by interviewing the project’s stakeholders, studying the project’s documentation and experiencing the Indonesian culture.

To me, this is a major opportunity for personal development. A long-term stay in a completely different environment all by myself will definitely challenge my personal skills. Also, by becoming familiar with the Indonesian society I hope to achieve greater insights in the Dutch’. On top of that I can help the Indonesian people by contributing to their flood protection. So enough to achieve!

As you have probably noticed I am very excited about this great adventure. With my blogs I hope to take you along on my journey, so enjoy the ride!

Wim

Description of project

Phases
The Semarang Pilot Polder project initially comprised of four phases, (1) Feasibility study , (2) institutional implementation of a Polder Authority (PA) in co-operation with the Dutch Schieland and Krimpenerwaard District Water Board (HSSK), (3) the technical design of the Pilot Polder, (4) knowledge transfer by the establishment of guidelines, addressing the experience of previous phases. Now we arrived at the final stage, implementation and sustainment.

The physical conditions are quite different from the Dutch situation. For instance: the pilot area is densely built and contains an organic network of infrastructure, the rainfall is 5 times as intense and, moreover, the pilot area is subject to land subsidence of approximately 10 cm per year.

Implementation
Beside the challenging technical aspects, the implementation of the polder concept in the existing social structures is a tough job. To manage the implementation, a PA has been set up in co-operation with local authorities. Gradually, the PA will take on responsibility for the polder management. In order to establish appropriate management, public support is essential. This requires extensive contacts with representatives of the local community. The PA were trained on the basis of the polder guideline and intensive courses. At the end of 2009, the polder design and the guideline will were handed over to the PA.

At the moment parts of the design are being implemented and the PA is established, still receiving back-up of Dutch experts from Witteveen+Bos and HSSK.