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With a total area of only a little more than 700 square kilometers and very limited access to fresh water, the island nation of Singapore is forced to do whatever it can to provide potable water to its five million inhabitants.

Just over 30 years ago, Singapore had water problems that would be familiar to residents of Jakarta, such as dangerously high levels of pollution in its rivers. But thanks to a series of ambitious projects, sound planning and serious investment, Singapore now has an integrated water management system that is able to provide 100 percent of its population with access to clean water.

The effort and leadership it took to get to this point, and the effort required to sustain it, provides insight into just how far Jakarta has to go to catch up to the city-state.

By the late 19th century, the Singapore River had already started to become dangerously polluted with garbage, sewage and industrial waste. Oil spills exacerbated the problem, with some 750 barges plying the river at its peak.

In 1977, the Singaporean government committed to a 10-year plan to clean up the river, which in turn would increase the supply of fresh water, make the surrounding area much more livable and pave the way for an integrated sewer system connecting the city’s various water systems. The clean-up process, however, required a massive resettlement program that saw thousands of squatters living on the shores of the river relocated into public housing.

Jakarta, of course, still faces similar problems. There are about 70,000 families occupying the banks of the Ciliwung River— just one of the 13 rivers traversing the capital. The Ciliwung, like most of the city’s rivers, is heavily polluted with garbage. Most of the squatters living along its banks throw their waste directly into the water.

“[The Singaporean government’s] capability has reached that [advanced] level, while we don’t even have an integrated sewage system in Jakarta,” said Fahrurrozi, head of the water resources division at the Jakarta Public Works Agency.

“Of course we want to reach that stage too, but it is very expensive while we have a very limited budget,” he said, adding that small-scale sewage systems could only be found in high-rise buildings and more well-developed areas such as Kuningan and Setiabudi in South Jakarta.

According to Arwin Sabar, an expert on water management and hydrology from the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), the problem in Indonesia lies in the lack of application of the law in water management. Both the central and local governments are guilty of poor oversight in controlling the water system and resources, he says.

“The state has given the authority to the executives to manage our water through various laws, but I haven’t seen a good implementation so far,” Sabar said.

He thinks the country’s water resources have been exploited on a massive scale, in part due to the government turning a blind eye. “There has been no punishment for companies who are polluting water resources. Singapore can be as successful as it is today because they uphold the law above everything,” he said. “We have all the laws, but they’re only on paper.

“The main key is conservation. We don’t want a colossal disaster to happen before we act, do we?”

According to Fahrurrozi, Jakarta’s government has a master plan to treat waste and used water, but it has yet to be implemented in any meaningful way. “Our main priority is still flood control and drainage,” he said, adding that Jakarta’s large population, which is double that of Singapore’s, makes matters much more difficult. “Unlike Singaporeans, our people are harder to manage,” he said.

While Singapore may have achieved great things with its water systems, its architects say that they must constantly forge ahead to keep up with the city’s growing needs.

“After 40 years of independence, our challenge remains the same — how to provide clean water for all,” said Michael Toh, senior deputy director at Singapore’s Public Utilities Board, which is in charge of the island’s water supply and sanitation. “We are trying to do all we can to capture every single drop of water that falls on Singapore,” he said.

In an attempt to limit water importation (Singapore currently imports a significant amount of water from Malaysia) and create its own sustainable supply, the country embarked on a new program that has already equipped half of the island’s land with water catchment areas, with the goal of increasing that to two-thirds this year.

Engineering such a large area into efficient water containment zones is a herculean task. The program, which has been ongoing for more than 10 years, includes cleaning up rivers and building dams, pumps and reservoirs, as well as expanding the integrated sewage system so that all usable water can be reclaimed and safely consumed.

Today, Singapore has 15 reservoirs and more than 7,000 kilometers of canals and drains to catch rainwater.

The city newest reservoir was created with the construction of the Marina Barrage, a massive dam opened in November 2008, built to cordon off Marina Bay from the ocean. The reservoir of water created by the dam is around 10,000 hectares wide, about one-sixth the size of Singapore. It serves not only as a water supply, but also as a flood control point and even an attraction that people visit for fun.

When used for flood control during heavy rains at low tide, the dam’s steel gates open to release excess storm water into the sea. At high tide, seven drainage pumps are activated to pump out excess water. With the barrage regulating water flow, low-lying areas in the city are no longer prone to flooding.

“People used to say that, to keep the water pristine, you have to keep people away from the water sources so they won’t pollute it. But you don’t see that in Marina Barrage,” Toh said.

Along the edges of the reservoir, you can see people flying kites, having picnics and exercising. It has also become a venue for water sports such as kayaking, windsurfing and water-skiing.

“Some people have even held their wedding parties here,” Toh said.

Marina Barrage took five years to build and cost about 226 million Singapore dollars ($178 million).

Another way the government is looking to meet Singapore’s long-term water supply needs is through the new deep tunnel sewer system. With this system, used water is collected through a network of sewer pipes that leads directly to the city’s water reclamation plants.

Completed in 2008, the first phase of the system comprises a 48-kilometer-long tunnel sewer running from the Kranji area of the city to a centralized water reclamation plant at Changi. It took five years to construct the tunnel, at a cost of more than 3 billion Singapore dollars.

At the Changi reclamation plant, used water from homes and businesses is treated and then either discharged into the sea or turned into NEWater. NEWater is Singapore’s bottled water brand made exclusively from reclaimed water. The Changi plant is capable of treating 176 million gallons of water per day.

“Sure we want something [like that in Jakarta] too, if we had the money,” Fahrurrozi said. “Right now, we are still battling just to fund the East Jakarta Flood Canal.”