Instrumenting GIS as Smart City Tools to Identify the Impact of Tidal Flood Threat in the Coastal Zone of Pekalongan City

Abstract

Pekalongan City, Central Java, Indonesia, is an urban area that often experiences floods and tidal hazards. The topography of Pekalongan City is lower than the sea, resulting in frequent tidal surges. The existence of the Smart City concept encourages the use of digital instruments to identify the extent of built areas that have a threat of tidal floods. Enhanced Built-Up and Bareness Index (EBBI) were used to map built-up areas. At the same time, the GIS method is considered a digital instrumental tool to identify and obtain flood and tidal hazard classes. Results of this study demonstrate three categories of flood and tidal hazards: a low threat of 305,79 hectares or 6.67%, a moderate danger of 1897,94 hectares or 41.94%, and a high threat of 2321,25 hectares or 51,3%. The total area of built areas that fall into the low classification is 22.25 hectares or 1.58%, the medium threat is 784,54 hectares or 55.5%, and the great danger is 606,62 hectares or 42.8%. From this case, the study also stressed that the circumstances of the Smart City concept had brought more and more exposure to digital instruments employed by local government.