Recovery of Lake Toba is said to be only 57 percent, administrative achievement is 89 percent

GARISBUMI.com – MEDAN, GARISBUMI.COM | The restoration of Lake Toba still faces a gap between administrative resolution and ecosystem improvement. Minister of the Environment/Head of the Environmental Control Agency (KLH/Environmental Management Agency (BPLH)) Moh Jumhur Hidayat said administrative achievements reached 89 percent, while restoration of aquatic ecosystems and water catchment areas was only 57 percent.

This figure was conveyed by Jumhur in a public lecture at HKBP Nommensen University, Medan, North Sumatra, Tuesday (27/10/2026). He emphasized that economic development needs to place human safety and environmental carrying capacity as considerations from the planning stage.

However, the KLH/Environmental Management Agency (BPLH) statement does not yet explain the indicators, assessment period and method for calculating these two percentages. Because they measure different aspects, the figures cannot yet be used to conclude the size of the area that has been restored or the extent of remaining restoration work.

Recovery must be proven through ecosystem conditions

Jumhur encourages the application of the principle of what he calls "ecological supremacy", namely placing human safety and the environment's ability to support life as development priorities.

In the context of recovery, he emphasized the need to examine results on the ground. The success of tree planting, for example, needs to be assessed through the survival of the vegetation and the condition of the soil and water.

According to information from KLH/Environmental Management Agency (BPLH), the government is designing an integrated program that includes supervision of extractive activities based on spatial information, confirmation of environmental restoration obligations by companies, as well as scientific verification of rehabilitation results.