Meninting Dam: Building Lombok from upstream

West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggar (ANTARA) - Drought during the dry season is an annual challenge on Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara, one of Indonesia's key rice-producing regions.

In the southern part of the island, farmers find the ground cracking under the scorching sun. River water levels continue to decline, forcing water pumps to operate longer to extract groundwater for irrigating paddy fields.

Some farmers even choose to delay planting rather than risk losses from crop failure. Instead, tobacco is commonly cultivated during the dry season because it requires relatively little water.

Meanwhile, several kilometers to the west of Lombok Island, freshwater flows abundantly from the highlands to the sea through the Meninting River, which originates on the western slopes of Mount Rinjani National Park.

The western and northern slopes of Mount Rinjani receive significantly more rainfall than the island's southern region, a disparity that serves as the primary cause of southern Lombok's frequent water shortages.

To address this decades-long imbalance, which becomes especially stark during the dry season, the government has built the Meninting Dam in Penimbung Village, located within West Lombok’s Gunungsari Sub-district.

The idea of constructing the massive dam dates back to the New Order era but was only realized three decades later under the National Strategic Project (PSN) program.

The project is part of the government's initiative, launched in 2015, to build dozens of dams to strengthen national food and water security.

Public Works Minister Dody Hanggodo said the Meninting Dam has a storage capacity of 10 million cubic meters of water, which can be utilized throughout the year.

The dam supplies irrigation to 1,559 hectares of paddy fields that previously relied solely on rainfall through an irrigation network stretching approximately 26 kilometers.

The rice planting index has increased from one harvest to three harvests annually, while rice productivity has risen to 6.3 tons per hectare.

The Meninting Dam also provides a raw water supply of 0.15 cubic meters per second, expanding access to clean water for 100,000 people, reducing flood risks in West Lombok District and Mataram City, and offering potential for hydropower generation and tourism development.

Standing 74 meters high with a crest length of 260 meters, it marks the first major dam built on Lombok Island since the completion of the Batujai Dam in Central Lombok in 1982.

A dam is more than just a massive concrete structure that prevents river water from flowing directly into the sea. It is a way for humans to manage time, by storing abundant rainwater in a reservoir during the wet season so it can be deployed when the dry season arrives.

Forests are key

Conditions in the upstream area will determine the future of the Meninting Dam. The dam's location on a hill, surrounded by steep slopes on the western side of Mount Rinjani National Park, presents serious challenges to the long-term sustainability of the infrastructure.

Climate change has made dry seasons longer and rainfall increasingly unpredictable. At the same time, demand for freshwater continues to grow for agriculture, households, and the tourism sector, which drive the regional economy.

Every drop of water flowing into the dam originates from the lush forests upstream of the Meninting River. The dense canopy slows rainfall before it hits the forest floor, while thick layers of leaf litter absorb the excess, stabilizing surface runoff.

The Meninting Dam's catchment area spans approximately 32.77 square kilometers, comprised mostly of hilly terrain. However, land clearing for agriculture and settlements, alongside landslides and erosion, threatens to accelerate sedimentation.

A scientific study conducted by Mataram University estimated the sedimentation rate at 40,526 cubic meters per year, a pace that threatens to reduce the dam's service life to just 45 years.

This sediment accumulation poses a long-term threat to the storage capacity of the Meninting Dam.

To mitigate this sedimentation, conservation efforts in the upstream water catchment area must be carried out immediately and maintained on a sustained basis.

The Meninting River is home to nine waterfalls, seven of which are widely known, including Tibu Tereng and Aiq Kelep, which serve as vital raw water sources for local residents.

However, existing forest protection regulations, from the national to regional levels, have yet to provide adequate safeguards for these upstream ecosystems.

To secure the watershed, the government must actively involve local communities and the private sector in protecting the forest areas surrounding the Meninting Dam.

Village economy gains momentum

The Meninting Dam, which inundates 45 hectares of land, has benefited not only farmers but has also created business opportunities for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), agro-tourism, and freshwater fisheries.

Several small food stalls have sprung up on top of the dam, offering panoramic views of Mataram City, the blue sea, and the majestic Mount Rinjani.

Every Saturday and Sunday, the food stalls are crowded with visitors. Many come as part of cycling communities, while others come with their families.

The area also offers campsites with tent rentals set amid a forest landscape.

Dozens of streams originating from Mount Rinjani converge into the Meninting River, an area renowned for its waterfalls, trekking routes, rock formations, and dense forest that remain largely untouched.

Head of the West Lombok Tourism, Creative Economy, Youth, and Sports Office Agus Gunawan said the area surrounding the Meninting Dam has enormous nature-based tourism potential.

The government should encourage Tourism Awareness Groups (Pokdarwis) to play an important role in promoting tourist attractions, among others, by serving as tour guides.

The Meninting Dam is an investment for future generations. The value of the infrastructure should not be measured by its Rp1.47 trillion construction cost, but by how long it can continue to provide water for farmers, local communities, and the environment.

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Editor: Rahmad Nasution

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