A new breakwaters will be constructed on Bali’s Kuta Beach to help preserve the iconic coastal retreat for many more generations of family holidaymakers to come.
Kuta Beach is Bali’s OG beach resort and, over the years, has been badly impacted by coastal erosion.
As resorts like Canggu and Uluwatu overtake the collective traveler psyche as the best destinations in Bali, OG gems like Kuta still have a lot to offer.
As more funds are poured into keeping Kuta a safe and welcoming vacation resort, the oldies are making a comeback.
The construction of a new breakwater will vastly improve the experience tourists will have on the beach, mostly because it will help preserve the wide stretch of sand that Kuta is so famous for.
However, over the coming months, tourists may see construction teams and conservation teams working together to build the breakwaters themselves.
The breakwaters will look similar to those seen along the coast of Sanur. The breakwaters are designed to prevent sand from getting washed away by the tide, which in turn preserves the useable beach areas for the public.
The project was due to start in October, but due to delays with budding permits, the project is to now get underway in the next few weeks. The project is being managed by the Bali-Penida River Basin Center (BWS), the Kuta Traditional Village, and funded in part by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The project will see the construction of four new breakwaters along the Kuta Beach area, through Legian and Seminyak Beach too, and upgrade work to the existing breakwater in front of Discovery Mall. On behalf of the Bali-Penida River Basin Center, Danang Raditya told reporters, “We will conduct socialization first, then the Ngeruwak ceremony will be held, and then the construction process will begin.”
He added, “The initial construction is still the same as the previous plan: breakwater first, followed by sand filling. The estimated sand filling will likely be done in early 2026.”
The project is receiving IDR 267 billion in funding and is set to be the most impactful way to tackle beach abrasion in the Kuta, Legian, and Seminyak areas.
In fact, coastal erosion is a serious issue all along the coast of Bali. Recent studies have shown that Bali’s coastlines have shrunk by over 1km in the last five years, with further erosion likely, especially as sea levels rise.
In late October, following serious full moon tidal flooding, community members and Bali tourists banded together to create a sand embankment to help protect the beachfront vendors from tidal flooding and protect the beach walk from the impact of rising tides.
The Head of Kuta Village, Komang Alit Ardana, told reporters that this is an all too common occurrence in Kuta that both community members and tourists have become used to.
He noted, “This is common; almost all of the coasts of Bali experience it. After the tide, the sand will settle at one point. To overcome it, the traders and we do gotong royong.”
Gotong royong is an Indonesian phrase with no direct translation in English, but it refers to community cooperation and united action for the common good.
He added, “Indeed, we do this activity regularly. Usually, we involve all people who do activities on the beach, including traders, to maintain cleanliness. This gotong royong activity has become a habit. So far, tourists have often helped. They really care about environmental cleanliness.”
Yet, many feel that it should not be the responsibility of the community or tourists to help tackle coastal erosion.
This is why, within the next 18 months, the new breakwaters will be in place to help protect Bali’s most famous beach resort for many more generations to come.
The position of the breakwaters is not expected to change the conditions of the surf at Kuta too drastically, and the beach resort will continue to be one of the best places in Indonesia to learn to surf.
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Mike Croney
Saturday 23rd of November 2024
The local government is doing an amazing job at constructing their island to its doom. How about preserving the dunes and stop building in the high tide mark and then blaming the ocean for it? Concrete island
Zilla
Saturday 23rd of November 2024
They do not know a thing about this and how much harm it will cause years down the track. Look at all great beaches now with breakwalls all destroyed because the sand gets washed away and create massive steep drop look at canggu and many beaches if only people did follow the rule not to build 100 meters maybe thier will be no problem good luck playing with nature ya muppets
Mark
Thursday 21st of November 2024
this is so fucked up! very disrespectful to all surf community and Kuta lovers, who contributed to the development of the area for decades. this government and politicians have stone in their brains...
Peter
Thursday 21st of November 2024
So we have a extended airport that has contributed to this erosion then a paved walkway that is being eroded so let's build another rock wall that will make it worse oh and let's have some timber huts that go along the walkway that look an eyesore anything else you can think of to further degrade kutas foreshore brains trust
Shorty
Wednesday 20th of November 2024
The breakwaters will help solve beach erosion.
But they will change the water/tidal flow patterns potentially causing problems elsewhere.
Hopefully an impact study has been done particularly for the reef, Kedonganan, Jimbaran and Balangan.