SUSTAINABLE URBAN DESIGN CONCEPT FOR TSUNAMI RISK AREA

CASE STUDY : TOWN IN THE SOUTHWEST COAST ACEH REGION

BY :
Nurlisa Ginting and Achmad Delianur Nasution

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Sustainable Development

“Sustainable development is development that

meets the needs of the present without
jeopardizing the ability of future generation to
meet their own needs” World Comission on
Environmental and Development (Brundtland
Comission, 1987).

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Sustainable Urban Design

Nine principle for “sustainable society” :

1. Respect and care for community of life
2. Improve the quality of human life
3. Conserve the Earth’s vitality and diversity
4. Minimize depletion on renewable resources
5. Keep within the Earth’s carrying capacity
6. Change personal attitudes and practices
7. Enable communities to care for their own
environments
8. Provide an international framework for integrating
development and coservation
9. Create global alliance 3
Objective of Urban Design

The purpose of Urban Design (Spreiregen 1985) :

1. To make the extend of the city comprehensible
2. To make the city human
3. To relate urban forms to natural settings
4. To weave new centers into the urban fabric
5. To complement the monumental with the mundane
6. To complement the urban with nature
7. To create key focal sites
8. To make the city a harbor of Diversity
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Tsunami :Guiding and Preventing
Principles
1. Recognize the risk of tsunami
2. Avoid new development in the affected areas to reduce
the future victims
3. Arrange new development in the affected areas and
minimizing the loss of damage in the future.
4. Plan and build the new building in reducing the
damaged.
5. Protect developed areas from the Tsunami affected with
the reconstruction, redesign and reoccupied.
6. Special prevention needed in arranging and redesign of
the infrastructure and public facility to reduce the
damaged.
7. Evacuation Planned

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Natural Dimension of Urban Design
McHarg (1989), Lewis, and other eloquent exponents of the
environment planning movement have brought into focus the
evolving philosophy that ecological processes provide
indispensable basis for planning and design.
The dependence of one life process on another; the
interconnected development of living and physical process of
earth, climate, water, plants, and animals; the continuous
transformation and recycling of living and non-living materials;
these are the elements of the self-perpetuating biosphere that
sustain life on earth and which give rise to the physical
landscape. They become the central determinants of form for all
human activities on the land.
The “Form Follow Function” principle could not be the sole basis
for environmental design. Today, “Design with Nature” principle is
part of design practices which is more appropriate to the
evolvement process of nature.
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Human Dimension of Urban Design
in Tsunami Risk Area
The concept of modern lifestyle which is based on moral code of
Islam, is one among concepts mentioned by Prof. Ghani Salleh
from University Sains Malaysia in the “Urban Recovery After
Earthquake and Tsunami Disaster” seminar on January 29, 2005
which was organized by Architecture Program of Postgraduate
School of University of North Sumatera.

Industry

Housing Mosque Buisness District

School
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 Physical Dimension of Urban Design
in Tsunami Risk Area
City Shape
A number of City Shape Concepts for areas which is in
jeopardy of tsunami:
- Redeveloping new town in the area of low possibility to be hit
by tsunami wave, for example: in remote areas from sea coast,
in highland areas , or in wall-surrounded areas.
- Creating natural barrier to tsunami waves that physically could
be mangrove trees or strong plants.
- Applying Compact city shape by an intensive and high
integrated land use which could also prevent natural
destruction extensively, at once.
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 Physical Dimension of Urban Design
in Tsunami Risk Area
Urban Element
Land Use
At the macro level, land use in sea coast area suggested to be the coastal
boundary line (300-500 m), which is used to be the green area and natural
drainage area so it could be the buffer or protection against tsunami wave.
According to the field work in the west coast of Aceh, the destruction effects of
tsunami wave generally lessened in the distance of 250 meters from the sea
coast.

Vehicles Circulation
The perpendicular major circulation from coastal area towards the hill is designed
wide open and leads directly to the evacuation point to assist community to
evacuate when tsunami comes.

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Physical Dimension of Urban Design
in Tsunami Risk Area
Pedestrian Ways
The shape of compact city creates possibilities to plan transportation mode that prioritize the
pedestrian, hence, the use of un-renewable fossil fuels such as gasoline, could be reduced as
minimum as possible.
Furthermore, the pedestrian patterns could be able to generate socialized lifestyle in urban
community.

Building Form and Massing

The orientation of building would be better to face the sea or able to receive quick warning of
vulnerabilities from the sea. Building construction should be focused on earthquake
resistance structures or temporarily withstand during the people try to find more secure place.

Open Space
Open spaces, squares and mosque courtyards turned to be evacuation areas in
emergency situation.

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Physical Dimension of Urban Design
in Tsunami Risk Area
Activity Support
Fishery and its activity supports are part of community livelihood and in
principal, the location has to be remained in the coastal area to support
the community to run their daily activities.

Information
Information, as part of community facilities, is set at public places and
coastal areas.

Preservation
The persistent buildings after the tsunami, especially public buildings
could be reoccupied as long as the construction strength remains
structurally accepted.
This would be memorial buildings and have economic advantage.

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Survey of Towns in the Southwest Coast
Aceh Region
• Survey was managed by a voluntary architects
team from Architecture Department of
Postgraduate Program of North Sumatera
University and Indonesian Institute of Architects
(IAI) in collaboration with Emergency Architect,
Perancis.
• The survey was conducted on January 20 – 26,
2005; covering towns and villages in coastal
districts along southwest coast of Aceh regions
between Meulaboh and Blang Pidie towns.
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 Survey of Towns in the Southwest Coast
Aceh Region
KAJEUNG

SUNGAI MAS
SUB REGENCY

• The Regencies of West Aceh, Nagan

SEUNAGAN TIMUR
SUB REGENCY

PANTE CEUREUMEN
SUB REGENCY

KUALA BHEE
KEUDE LNTEUNG
BEUTONG
BUNGONG PULO
SUB REGENCY
WOYLA JEURAM
SUB REGENCY PATE CEUREUMON

SEUNAGAN
SUB REGENCY

ARONGAN LAMBALEK
SUB REGENCY

Raya and Southwest Aceh.

KUALA
SIMPANG PEUT
DRIEN RAMPAK SUAK PUNTONG SUB REGENCY
VILLAGE
BANDA LAYUNG
DARUL MAKMUR
KUALA BARO
BUBON
KEUON ARON
VILLAGE LANGKAK
VILLAGE
SUB REGENCY
SUB REGENCY KUALA TUHA
VILLAGE

KAWAY XVI KUBANG GAJAH PADANG PANJANG

VILLAGE
SUB REGENCY
KUALA TRANG
SAMATIGA VILLAGE
SUB REGENCY SUKA MAKMUR
COT RAMBONG
VILLAGE

SUAK TIMAH

KUALA TADU
VILLAGE

JOHAN PAHLWAN
SUB REGENCY
MEURUBO
SUB REGENCY

MEULABOH

MEUREUBO

• The Regency towns:

(1)Kuala
(2)Manggeng TUTU

(3)Tangan-tangan TEUNOM

SUAK TIMAH
PASI
PUNGKI

JEURAM
MEULABOH

(4)Susoh KUTANIBONG
TADUK

SEUMAYAN
LAMAINONG
KUTA BAHAGIA

(5)Keuda Batee SUSOH BLANG PIDIE

TANGAN TANGAN

MANGGENG

(6)Johan Pahlawan
(7)Merbau BABAHROT

BABAHROT SUB REGENCY

(8)Samatiga
KUTA BAHAGIA

BLANG PIDIE SUB REGENCY

KUALA BATEE SUB REGENCY

LAMA TUHA VILLAGE

PULO KAYU VILLAGE

BLANG PIDIE

PADANG BARU VILLAGE SUSOH

KEDAI SUSOH VILLAGE

(9)Arongan Lambalek
PALAK KARAMBEE VILLAGE

SUSOH SUB REGENCY TANGAN-TANGAN SUB REGENCY

TANJUNG BUNGA

MANGGENG SUB REGENCY

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MANGGENG

(10) Darul Makmur

THE TYPOLOGY OF TOWNS AND SETTLEMENTS
OF SOUTHWEST ACEH REGION BEFORE THE
DISASTER

• Ribbon shape city

• It was shaped by the ‘barriers’: coastal zone
on one hand, and hilly land on the other.
• The growth of town follows the linier
pattern of road.
• The orientation of physical formation of
town is roads.
• The towns are back on to the sea.

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THE ARCHITECTURE TYPOLOGY OF TOWNS IN SOUTHWEST ACEH
REGION

• A neighborhood pathway in
each of every two (2) housing
lots which is more-or-less
parallel to the coastal line.

• Pathways between
settlements which oriented to
sea and to the road.

• With an interval of three-

blocks-of-housing, there is an
artery road which its position
is also functioned as the
boundary between flat ground
and hill. 15
 Site Section of Town / Settlements of Aceh West Coast

• At the coastal boundary line which is the government property

(about 150 m coastal line), settlements orientation is to the sea in a
dispersive pattern. the spread.
• There are also a number of Fishermen Activity Centres at this
boundary line.
• At the back of this boundary line there is a linier pattern settlement
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oriented to the road.
Neighbourhood pathway in
settlement area and the typology of
Architecture

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The Architecture typology of towns in Southwest Aceh Region

ROAD

Settlement Housing orientation is to the

pathway not to the sea.
Dominant housing spacious,
more-or-less 30m2
TO THE SEA
Single-floor houses.
Materials are mainly wood
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and cement plaster.
Survey of Towns in the Southwest Coast
Aceh Region
By many variations in different locations, the totally
destroyed buildings is in the distance of 250 meters from
the coastal line.

The condition of town around Meulaboh Mosque

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Survey of Towns in the Southwest Coast Aceh
Region

Buildings in the coastal

boundary line are oriented
to the road and backed on
to the sea.
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 Land Use Design Concept
Land Use Pattern
Land use planning for coastal towns regions aftermath of the earthquake
and tsunami disaster is based on the estimation of building location and
activities safeness to the tsunami hazard, as follows:
• The seaport and wave-breaker planned to be built at the seashore areas
which is directly contact to the sea.
• The area within the coastal boundary line and the edge of the road is
planned a greenery area consists of vegetations to absorb and resist wave
energy. This area could also become a public open space.
• The artery road is planned in the boundary between coastal and hilly
zones.
• Settlement is placed in the hilly area with earthquake-resistant
construction.
• The area between the artery road and settlement area in the hilly zone, is
planned to be a greenery area.
• Mosque is placed in the center of neighbourhood.
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Circulation Design Concept
Circulations
• The perpendicular major circulation from coastal area towards
the hill is designed wide open and leads directly to the
evacuation point in higher area to assist community to evacuate
when tsunami comes.
• Hierarchy and circulation pattern are oriented to the major
circulation line.
• The Circulation structures follow the natural contours
form.
• The circulation in the neighbourhood is mainly for
pedestrian.
• The circulation to the coastal areas as the place of
livelihood should be good, acceptable and clear.
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Building Design Concept
Building
• Building orientation is better face to the sea or
enable in quick information acceptance regarding
to the danger from the coast.
• Wooden house construction is better in earthquake
resistance or enough to hold up until the people
save themselves to the save place
• Public facility building construction such as
mosque should be made by the earthquake
resistance, therefore its could be used as an
evacuated areas.

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Recommendation :
Open Space
New Town Planning New Town Area
and Mosque
A compact and harmonize town as a town
shape with contours. center
The main road to be the
evacuation facilities from the sea
area towards the hill.
The new town is close to the
former one.
Open spaces to be the evacuation
point on the top of the hill.
Sea orientation.
Old Town Area
The areas inside Coastal Boundary
Area become Greenery and as center
of fishermen activities and tourism.
Settlements on the hilly zone.
Artery road becomes coastal 24
boundary line.
 Recommendations : Land Section

250-300 meters

Wave breaker: men-made or natural mangrove forest.

Road as the physical indication of the coastal boundary area.
Settlements in a higher level of land.
Changing contours at the minimum level.
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