The Spatial Concerns Of Developing New Economic Centers in Regional Areas

JAKARTA – Spatial planning is a crucial factor to consider in the development of special economic zones (KEK) and industrial estates (KI).

Based on the government's 2020-2024 Mid-Term Working Plan (RPJMN), the general policy direction of national development is comprised of several pillars. First is to improve the quality of the environment, with the target of the environmental quality index reaching 75 to 78 by 2024. Second is to improve disaster and climate resilience by reducing the ratio of economic losses due to natural disasters and climate hazards by 0.3% of the national gross domestic product (GDP) by 2024. Third is to fulfill carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets against  the baseline, with the GHG emission targets at 27.3% and GHG emission intensity decrease target at 24% in 2024.

According to the head coordinator of regional and urban planning study programs at the Kalimantan Institute of Technology, Achmad Gozali, industrial development is currently also keeping the green industry concerns in mind, which tends to be carried out through efforts such as the auditing of energy use in industries, technology modifications and industrial waste management.

"Moreover, industrial development is increasingly concerned with green issues. This does not have a negative impact on the environment but it does optimize economic improvement and can lead to a more inclusive industrial zone," he explained during the University Lecture #3 Road to Indonesia Development Forum 2021 webinar on Thursday (22/7). 

The main challenges of many KIs and KEKs is not about the use of the land that they're on but also the availability of land. The problems of these zones do not only have internal impacts, but also impacts the surrounding environment. This is driven by aspects of industrial movements and activities that occur around the area, thus, internal and external accessibility becomes an important issue.

"The impact on surrounding areas must be considered when developing industrial zones i order to prevent any spatial disputes," Achmad said. 

KEKs developed in rural areas could lead to urbanization, therefore giving rise to new growth potential. However, it can also pose negative impacts on the environment and its surrounding areas. Aside from providing the surrounding regions with optimal accessibility, it can also lead to possible land price increases, reduced urban activity, increased vulnerability to disasters, increased changes to the environmental and the shrinking of green land.

"Therefore, there needs to be some controls implemented in the form of growth and development restrictions that would ensure the balance of spatial utilization and maintaining the quality of the surrounding environment. These factors must be addressed," Achmad said.