Countermesure Act Regarding to Urban Heat Island in Indonesia

Half of population in the earth has been living in urban area. It is estimates that in
2030, the urbanization in term of global can reach 70% which caused by a continual
population transmigration and centralization from rural area to urban. Thus, no wonder the
negative impact caused by urbanization is a very concerning matter. Negative impact to the
environment are like polution, atmosphere changing through physical or chemical substances
and most important thing is Urban Heat Island (UHI).Urban Heat Island is the commulative
effect from urbanization problem. Increasing of the temperature in some areas that is built by
human define as Warm Island, while Cool Ocean is defined for some areas that has a
lower temperature than surrondings. Even this things is commonly happen in rural or urban
area, but the more impact felt in urban area because the surface tends to loose the heat in a
big amount. Nevertheless, Urban Heat is not only occuring in urban area only, the impact is
spreading out to the widest area since it is the global disaster, not a local anymore.
Beside, lack of vegetation as the surface lid and lower of soil humidity. Commonly, in
the noon, plant wil absorb sunheat to photosyntesis then be evaporated to the atmosphere that
will cooling down the temperature. This mechanism of cooling down hardly to be done
nowadays since the chnaging function of the plant into a building, thus the temperature
surroundings remain high then become waterproof and dry. Another factors is waste heat that
is produced from energy usage, like motor vehicle, industri or even air conditioner. When the
population is increasing, then the needs of housing is also increasing, thus the energy usage
also increasing and the more heat is absorbed by the urban. Besides, the geometric effect of
the town also has an impact to UHI. High building will provide double surface to absorb the
sunheat and also to reflect it, thus will increasing the efficiency of urban heat. Besides, the
building also impede the wind that actually will help the cooling down process.

Figure 1. Phenomena Sketch of Urban Heat Island

 Urban Heat Island Impact
Tendency of people in Indonesia facing the heating surface that is worst by the long
term of dry season is to exploit the air conditioner energy. This might lead to the higher
consumption of electricity that will impact to the power plant to force for fulfilling the
needed by increasing the power. Thus, the carbon emission produced will also be increased.
Not only the increasing of carbon emission, but also the increasing of budget of government
for fulfilling the needed. UHI also can caused the heavy rain anda thunderstorm becausethe
higher temperature, the lower of the air pressure thus can caused the movement of air mass to
some area, the higher temperature will easiest the evaporation and caused the water vapour
goes to the higher altitude that will turned into a heavy rain.
On the other hand, heat island during dry season will accelerate the dangerous fog,
like ozon precusor that is nitrous oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that
will react photochemically with the ozon (Camilio danArrau, 2011). But amongst another
impact, the disease or even the mortality caused the heat is the most dangerous one, like
respiratory and heart system disorder.

A
r
e
a
(
h Type of land
a of land
)
Figure 2. The Changing Function of land and Map of Heat Distribution in Semarang City
From the spatial observation, there is an expansion of UHI area in range of (30-350C)
that consist of settlement and industrial area in Semarang city (one of the big city in
Indonesia) about 12.174 ha or 8,4% every year. This expansion of heat distribution may lead
into an unconvinient human life. Every energy loss will be a heat in an atmosphere.
Urban Heat Island Countermeasure (Indonesia)

Although urban climatologists have been studying urban heat islands for decades,
community interest and concern regarding them has been more recent. This increased
attention to heat-related environment and health issues has helped to advance the
development of heat island reduction strategies,mainly trees and vegetation, greenroofs, and
cool roofs. Interest in cool pavements has been growing, and an emerging body of research
and pilot projects are helping scientists, engineers, and practitioners to better understand the
interactions between pavements and the urban climate. Some of actions taken might be
classified as the prevention, as I can say that the prevention is not concerning on prevent the
urban heat island but more to the prevent the expansion of urban heat island.

In Indonesia, especially in my hometown there are some preventive action taken to

reduce the impact and also to reduce the expansion of urban heat island. These are the
example taken that I have experienced by myself :
1. Revegetation the green areas surrond the city. This action has been very popular
among society. Many private and public company or even the governement commit to
do this action. The action that I have been done along with my friends and society in
Gunung Kidul. Revegation will cooling down the temperature of the earth because
they will transform the heat into an energy for themself and the residu will be given
out to the earth through evaporation that will cooling down the temperature
surrondings.

The map above shows how big the wildfire could be spread out all over Indonesia and
can cause an massive heat catastrophe to the earth. Through this kind of
 countermeasure, we reduce the anthropogenic heat. The anthropogenic heat is heat
that is caused by the human activities, for example like deforestation, increasing of
vehicles, industry, and so on. Through the revegetation, the heat will be reduced a lot
since the absorber is increasing and it will absorb the most toxic gas in atmosphere,
carbon dioxide.

2. Settle up an environmental-friendly building, like green roof. This method is proven

to be one of the most effective way to reduce the heat effect of the UHI. In Indonesia,
this building nowadays become one of the mostpopular building that take place in the
middle of a capital city. Not only in a big modern building, this also applied in the
traditional design building, like in Minangkabau.

According to the my little research 4 years ago, there are formulation to make a good
combination layer that is suitable to the roof in Indonesia which usually has high slope.
There are 4 main layers, first layer is waterproofing later which has a thickness from 10 until
15 mm. Waterproof layers is an important layer because they should hold the water on the top
of the roof and avoid the water to penetrate into the woods deck. Second layer is a drainage
layer. The purpose of drainage layer is to remove excess water from the roof. The drainage
system must consider surface water, sub-surface water and transporting water from the roof,
which has a thickness not more than 40 mm. The third layer is a growth media layer as a
place for developing the plant in the roof which has thickness to 2 inches and contains of 70
80% mineral and 20 30% organic material. The last layer is a plant which has height no
more than 24 cm, has a herb unwoody stem and we should avoid an over plus development
which can cause an overweight and damaging of the roof.
 Vegetation Layer

Growth Media Soil

Layer

Drainage Layer

Water proof Layer

Roof Structure

The main function of this green roof is for absorbing the source of gas which is the
main cause of global warming, carbon dioxide. Every plant can absorb about 5% from the gas
pollution. Every day, there is always 6 million tons of carbon dioxide be given out to the
environment. When all of the houses in Indonesia use the green roof which will be planted
with not only one plant, the gas pollution which can cause the global warming will definitely
reduce. Besides, the cost for making one meter square of this project is only $1.05. It is really
cheap and achievable by the citizen. So, green roof can be made in a economic and simple
way by Indonesian citizen.

3. Increasing the water and green or trees. This statement is very opposing the reality
that the land provided is very limited and can not be expanded no more. So through
the little invention of some students in Indonesia, there invested Saung Kagura. This
invention found to be the effective way to plant the tree without using any land area,
but still did not ignoring the function nor the esthetics.

They have many functions inside their tiny little forms, they can absorb the heat and also
cooling down the temperature through the plant inside the bottle. Through the left-over bottle
used in this method will save the land through the reduce and reuse plastic waste so that the
land wont decreasing their humidity. Another function, it could be the good alternatives for
the one who has a small land of a house but still want to contribute to save the earth and also
want to create a high-esthetic house by hanging the plant around their home. This proven can
cooling down the surround temperature until 8 degrees celcius.

4. Changing lifestyle. Probably this is the hardest way that can be done by the society
since the paradigm of Indonesian still try to find the most easiest way to take.
Sometimes it brough people into an effectiveness, but most of the case will lead to
dismissing some important part to be done and ignoring the effect to the environment.
For example, number of private motor vehicle is always increasing. People thought
using motorcycle or even a car could effective their travel time. But as time flies, the
industry of motor vehicle seems compromising in Indonesia so that the price always
decreasing by the increasing of the investors. But the effect is lead to the higher of
carbon emission that produced from the fuel oxidation, the traffic jam could
increasing the carbon emission and travel time and also kind of respiratory disorders.
Thus, the other invention was trying to be introduced to the people through the e-
cycle equipment. This bicycle was designed by a high school student and it was
legalize in Turkey. The bicycle can speed twice than usual bike in the same stroke. It
was proven to effective the time until 230% than the usual bike.

The bicycle also completed with the charging to have a dual function through the
electically usage and also manually usage. This bike also hoping to be the best solution to the
society to be used as the saily transportation in Indonesia and compromisingly reduce the heat
that caused by carbon emission from motor vehicle.

Through all of the effort mention, the compromising method only happen in a
compromising solitary to build the world a better place and also be aware about the Urban
Heat effect globally, so that the solution could be taken as fast and effective as possible.