Lifeline: The water pipeline that is the main source of clean water for Nyeredep hamlet in Aik Bual village, Central Lombok.

A hundred and fifteen watershed areas spread river streams from the peak of Mount Rinjani over all parts of Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara, making the mountain a main source of life and activity for the island population of 3.2 million. Renggung is one of the watersheds prioritized for community management.

Two metal water pipes the size of an adult'€™s embracing arms are fitted on the wall of a slope in Nyeredep hamlet, Aik Bual village, Kopang district, Central Lombok, with their brownish and rusty bolts indicating their age.

Head of Nyeredep hamlet, Saparudin, said the waterfall of Nyeredep pouring down from the slope used to be a tourist spot, when it was still managed by the village community. Visitors came from various regions, something he described as being capable of promoting rural development through social interaction.

The government later transferred its management to the state. The West Nusa Tenggara provincial administration, through the Regional Drinking Water Company, has targeted a clean water supply of 57 percent in 2015, compared to 24.5 percent in 2009.  This goal covers the supply for East, Central and West Lombok regencies as well as Mataram city.

Official data shows that water springs in Lombok are unevenly distributed. Most of them are found in Narmada, North Batukliang, Aikmel, Motong Gading, Lingsar and Pringgasela. The Nyeredep Waterfall is one of the 107 springs utilized in Lombok. According to Saparudin, many other sources aren'€™t yet recorded by the government and remain controlled by local residents, some even stay intact.

Storytelling: Head of Nyeredep hamlet, Saparudin, tells the history of the area along with its preserved watersheds.

Head of Aik Bual village, Zulkarnain, said the local community was considering the inclusion of water spring management in a village regulation, due to the inseparability of water sources from watershed management. '€œThe community is obliged to safeguard water streams within and outside forest areas from any damage. We'€™re also responsible for environment quality improvement and farmers'€™ income increase through agro-forestry and environment services,'€ he pointed out.

The regulation, as suggested by Zulkarnain, also requires the planting of trees and their upkeep by residents planning to get married, parents with newborns and all villagers utilizing clean water from local springs. '€œWe'€™re being assisted by Fauna & Flora International [FFI] in formulating the rule. We have also created a tree planting data recording system. In the future, the trees will be a buffer safeguarding the lives of locals,'€ he added.

Surveying the spring of Nyeredep, FFI field officers Ahmad and Johan, went downstream to reach a clear lake, known as embung (reservoir of) Aik Bual, which they said had been in existence for a long time now. Zulkarnain noted the reservoir had been there since his grandfather'€™s time. It was expanded in the 1960s, followed by further enlargement in the 1970s and 1980s with the aid of the Public Works Office.

In the past, he recalled, local villagers frequently held ritual prayers to ward off evil spirits at the edge of the reservoir. In his view, such ceremonies should have been accompanied by water source protection activities, at least by planting trees in the upstream area of the lake.

The Aik Bual village administration manages 5-hectare forestland upstream of the reservoir, within the settlement of the local people. Any act that harms the forest, including animal hunting, is prohibited. Apart from providing water for villagers, the forest, through the lake, also distributes water to paddy fields through channels downstream.

Zulkarnain, also a patron of the Water Spring Management (Permata) group of Aik Bual, stressed the function of forests as a sponge, absorbing water and releasing it gradually. In the process, the clean water discharged is collected in reservoirs or lakes, or directly flows into river streams.

Meanwhile, head of the provincial Forestry Office, Andi Pramaria, welcomed the idea of the community management of water springs. According to him, a regional regulation on watershed management will be drafted this year. Forests in Lombok have been categorized into protected forests, nature reserves, tourist forests, limited production forests and permanent production forests, with managed forests covering 159,167.28 hectares.

'€œIn Central Lombok alone there are over 19,000 hectares, all made up of watershed areas. The regional regulation being prepared will be very significant if it involves community participation. Moreover, the document on Renggung watershed management is already available,'€ added Andi.

'€” JP/Syafrizaldi