Page 221 - THE MELANESIA DIASPORA FILE CETAK ISI 10022017

Fertile areas located in a river Flood plain
flood plain. This area contains
a lot of water and nutrients Oxbow Lake
in the ground. Flooding
will contribute to nutrients
River Upland River Upland
essential for plant growth.

Flood plain area Flood sediments Bedrocks River Valley
(due to erosion)

When tsunami strike, they have the power to completely wipe out communities living
near the sea. The fact that tsunamis strike at possibly long intervals of hundreds of years,
the memory of former tsunamis may be lost and people move in to inhabit high risk areas.
Floods and landslides are another form of natural disaster. Topographical conditions and
rainfall are cause of floods and landslides. Humans must adapt their lifestyle to these
phenomena or move to another area.
Floods are often disastrous but they also distribute nutrient rich soil to different areas.
So floods can have a negative impact but also rejuvenate the soil by adding nutrition. The
process of re-fertilizing the soil for farming and agriculture happens on a relatively routine
yearly basis. This has made it possible for farmers to learn about cycles and use floods to
their advantage. This remembering and learning from thinking about these cycles is found
in farmers in remote areas but less so with those along the coast.
Nearly all of these natural phenomena can have both positive and negative effects. It is
usual for both to happen simultaneously and dynamically. Other natural disasters including
forest fires also occur in Indonesia. These natural phenomena will be the main supporting
factors in forcing the inhabitants in Indonesia to move or adapt to natural behavior.
Next page is the simple cross-section of a river with the river shown in blue and a natural
levee. On the right and left sides are flat areas called flood-lands shown in dark green.

Chapter 5 221

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