BPPT to Continue Weather Modification amid Criticism

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Assessment and Application of Technology Agency (BPPT) asserted it would continue implementing the weather modification technology (TMC) to prevent Jakarta and its surrounding areas from flooding, given BMKG’s (Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency) forecast of lingering torrential rains.

Agency head Hammam Riza explained that his side would do their best to carry out cloud seeding. “We will keep striving to do this operation to avert potential flood,” said Hammam in a statement on Sunday, January 26.

The weather modification efforts have been afoot since January 3, 2020, following the severe flooding that hit Jakarta and its neighboring areas on New Year’s Day. The efforts were made in collaboration with several institutions, viz. the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), the Indonesian Air Force, and BMKG, Hammam added.

“We sprinkle salt over rain clouds to prompt rainfall before entering the Greater Jakarta area," Hammadm said, pointing to the location of artificial rain targets above Sunda Strait waters.

Earlier during a discussion at the BPPT, National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan) chief Thomas Djamaluddin conveyed his critical notes about the weather modification, questioning the effectiveness of the operation he considered dangerous because of giant cloud clusters with height reaching kilometers.

MOH KHORY ALFARIZI