Find the future from the past: Paleolimnology in Indonesia

¹ School of Postgraduate Studies, Diponegoro University, Semarang Indonesia
² Department of Biology, Faculty of Science and Mathematics, Diponegoro University, Semarang Indonesia
³ Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Diponegoro University, Semarang Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: trsoeprobowati@live.undip.ac.id

Abstract

Agriculture, hydro electricity power, fisheries, source of drinking water, recreation, and industrial use has led to wide-spread impairment of Indonesia surface waters. Indonesia is rich with various freshwaters, including 840 unique lakes with different size and types, 735 ponds, and 162 dams that covering about 21,000 km² of area, contain about 500 km³ of water functions as both economically and ecologically purposes. Indonesia is also one of the biggest listed freshwater endemic species in Asia. However, an increase of population and human activities affect a decrease in quantity and quality of several lake ecosystems that able to induce the destruction up to extinction of the lake ecosystem. An increase of lake utilization, with partial management system without considering the preservation and sustainability of ecosystem had reduced lake functions. Paleolimnological approach is one of science and technological approach to support the successfull of grand design of Indonesian lakes conservation and rehabilitation, specifically on the program of lakes’ development ecosystem monitoring, evaluation, and information system. The studied on (paleo) limnology in Indonesia had been collected and compared. The vertical distribution of trace elements of Ni, Mg, and B were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) with mass spectrophotometry for 44 cm sediment core from Telaga Pengilon Dieng, Java. The paleolimnological studies in Indonesia have been limited, particularly for Indonesian as the first author. Lakes’ sediment records the changes condition of catchment area, like a diary book. Reconstruction of the past environmental condition is required to predict the future condition. This can be done using the organism preserved in the sediment, such as diatoms and pollen. Diatoms are unicellular algae that are used extensively in paleoecology. The diatom assemblages in sedimentary records can make direct and indirect inferences about past environmental conditions. The palynological data on the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem are used as an indicator of recent and paleoecological changes, particularly on the climate, history and floral diversity. Paleolimnological analysis increasingly attention is being given to developing the technique to model human activities.