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posted by martyb on Monday August 26 2019, @11:19PM   Printer-friendly
from the can-you-say-land-speculation? dept.

Jakarta Is Crowded And Sinking, So Indonesia Is Moving Its Capital To Borneo

Indonesian President Joko Widodo says his country will create a new capital city on the island of Borneo, revealing new details about his plan to move the central government out of Jakarta. The capital's current location faces a number of problems, including the fact that it's sinking.

Widodo's announcement Monday comes months after he said he wanted to move the capital, seeking a place that can offer a break from Jakarta's environmental challenges as well as its relentlessly gridlocked traffic.

While rising seawater levels from climate change are a widespread concern for island and coastal areas worldwide, experts say Jakarta has played a central role in its own predicament. "Jakarta's problems are largely man-made," NPR's Merrit Kennedy reported earlier this year. "The area's large population has extracted so much groundwater that it has impacted the ground levels, and many surface water resources are polluted."

Jakarta has a population of around 10 million, with 20 million more in the greater metropolitan area.

Also at NYT and CNN.


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  • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday August 27 2019, @07:28PM (2 children)

    by JoeMerchant (3937) on Tuesday August 27 2019, @07:28PM (#886318)

    I would characterize that as "wrongly" not "interestingly". One isn't going to sell cheap used cars on real estate that costs $100k per acre. The cost is the ante for the value of what's put on the property.

    Maybe from the perspective of Ted Kaczynski's cabin, you could be correct. 2003 Miami - water heater replacement, cost of water heater +$75 to the licensed plumber who put it in. 2005 Houston - water heater replacement, cost of water heater +$200 to the licensed plumber who not only put in that water heater but also did several other jobs on the property at the same time. Similar cost differences for siding repair, painting, window replacement, etc. Getting a hurricane damaged home fixed up in Miami was significantly cheaper per square foot than the equivalent repair work in Houston - even though the home in Miami sold for twice as much per square foot. Stick that in your economic theory and smoke it. I attribute it to the Hialeah community which provided competitive labor throughout Dade county, whereas Houston and North Florida are populated by proud anglo tradesmen who won't get out of bed for less than $500 per day.

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  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday August 27 2019, @07:50PM (1 child)

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday August 27 2019, @07:50PM (#886331) Journal

    2003 Miami - water heater replacement, cost of water heater +$75 to the licensed plumber who put it in. 2005 Houston - water heater replacement, cost of water heater +$200 to the licensed plumber who not only put in that water heater but also did several other jobs on the property at the same time.

    So a plumber who did less work cost less than a plumber who did more work?

    Getting a hurricane damaged home fixed up in Miami was significantly cheaper per square foot than the equivalent repair work in Houston

    What is "equivalent repair work"?

    • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday August 27 2019, @08:39PM

      by JoeMerchant (3937) on Tuesday August 27 2019, @08:39PM (#886374)

      So a plumber who did less work cost less than a plumber who did more work?

      No, read carefully: "water heater replacement, cost of water heater +$200" other work was billed separately and amounted to a total of more than $500 for the trip.

      What is "equivalent repair work"?

      Removal of old water heater, install of new one - pretty damn equivalent. Our houses have always been in the 40-60 year old range, so we've got lots of similar jobs. In Miami when I'd call in outside labor it was (almost) always worthwhile to pay the professional to do the job, in Houston and North Florida I'd frequently send them away because they were just lazy greedy bastards. Upgrade 40' run of wiring from 12 gauge to 10 gauge, $150 upcharge on the job (increased bid over the 12 gauge price) - 50' box of 10 gauge wire selling for $50 at the time - go screw yourselves.

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