There is more than meets the eye to Mount Gede-Pangrango National Park. Sure, it is home to the Javan Hawk Eagle, the yellow-throated marten and more than 249 of Java¡'s 450 known bird species. And yes, it comprises six distinct ecosystem types (sub-montane, montane, sub-alpine, lake, marshland and savanna) and provides a popular hiking spot and weekend destination for residents of Jakarta, Bogor, Bekasi, Depok and Tangerang.
Besides all that, however, the park serves as a primary catchment area for the 30 million people who live in those five cities, producing for them a reliable flow of clean water. It also supports small communities who live in and around the park and depend on it for their livelihoods.
Despite the forests' importance, however, more than 10,000 hectares have been degraded. That is part of the reason Conservation International has undertaken its Green Wall project. In partnership with the Gede-Pangrango administration and Daikin Industries, a Japanese company that makes air conditioners, the US-headquartered NGO has been working with local communities to revitalize the park and turn it into a force for sustainable development.
And what a force it could be: Gede-Pangrango has the potential to provide around 213 billion liters of clean water annually, said Agus Wahyudi, director of the national park.
"We do this to show the community that if they preserve the forest, nature can continue to provide clean and reliable flows of water that will fulfill their daily needs," Agus said in a video produced by CI and available on its website.
Despite the potential abundance, one of the local people's biggest daily obstacles is the lack of accessible fresh water. Natural sources might be several kilometers away from where they live. Searching for it, putting it in jerrycans and bringing it back is time-consuming and exhausting, said Ujang Sarip, the Panyusuhan village chief. Lack of electricity is also a problem, he said.
"When you don't have reliable access to electricity and water, you feel vulnerable and hopeless," Ujang said.
To alleviate that, CI has built pipes to bring fresh water closer to the people. They have also installed Pico-hydro stations hydro-electric power machines that generate less than five kilowatts to convert flowing water to electricity.
"We do these works to show the community that if they preserve the forest and nature, nature can continue to provide clean and reliable flows of water that will fulfill their daily needs of water and electricity," said CI-Indonesia program manager, Anton Ario, in the video.
The project also involves replanting trees around the boundaries of the national park. That is where the name 'Green Wall' comes from. Nearly 200 hectares have been restored. Teaching people how to look after the trees and why it is important is another aspect. It is all part of the idea that Gede-Pangrango can better sustain people¡'s livelihoods if its forests are not cut down.
For Ujang, that point has been driven home. "Now I realize, preserving the forest is important, so the water can flow," he said. "And my children, grandchildren and I can continue to benefit from nature and live prosperously."