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More Cliff Carnage at Uluwatu as Development Continues Unabated

Originally posted on SURFER | By Ben Mondy | Last updated Jan 20, 2025 5:53 PM ET

It’s the rainy season in Bali. And January is the wettest month. On average the 31 days received 350 mm, or almost 14 inches, of precipitation. This year the first clump of those 14 inches has fallen on the new seawall construction works that started back in August as a means to protect the Uluwatu Temple. The results, as shown by this clip posted by Piter Panjaitan above, are as disturbing as they are inevitable.

The footage, taken on December 28, 2024, shows waterfalls of cliff sediment cascading into the reef and ocean below, turning the natural Indian Ocean green and blues into chalky creams and muddy browns. The seawall has already been extended at the base of the wave Secrets and the scale of the continued works, and erosion, is apparent.

“Why is the whole community not in the government's offices en masse fighting this as one big group?” Was Kelly Slater’s response to the above video and the clear impacts of the construction.

Piter Panjaitan explained to Kelly that he had convened a meeting with the government, surfers, coastal experts and elders of the community just a few days before this footage was taken to discuss the environmental impact. He said that no progress was made, and described the project as a “done deal.”

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A post shared by Piter Panjaitan (@piterpanjaitan)

Panjaitan, a surfer and father of two, is the Director of BaliLife Foundation, which focuses on providing educational empowerment for the underprivileged children of Bali. He has been one of a few local activists who have been willing to risk the real consequences of standing up to the Bali authorities by highlighting the issues.

In September, he posted a video of construction workers throwing all of the limestone into the ocean and discovered there was no project manager onsite. Given there was also no public Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before the works started, that is perhaps unsurprising.

The project is backed by the local Badung Regency Government. In October local government elections saw the key politicians win re-election meaning any change to the status quo is unlikely.

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A post shared by I Gd Arya Wisnu K | Sewa Drone Bali (@aryawiznu)

More footage has been supplied by @aryawiznu whose drone images have also provided stunning, clear aerial footage as the project continues to expand. Seeing it is one thing though, stopping it is another thing entirely.

“Share it. At this moment, that’s all we can do. Just share it. Expose it. It’s important to preserve the temple,” Panjaitan told media recently. “I don’t want to be selfish just because we might lose waves. But it’s not just about one wave. It’s about the marine life and the people who live off the surf community and culture.”

Other footage posted by @canggu.info showed images of further erosion just below the temple itself. It looks like more of the cliff has been eroded and exposed than the original crack that started the whole process. It poses the question that all this environmental degradation may not even achieve its stated aim of protecting the temple, which has been Bali’s spiritual hub for more than 1000 years.

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A post shared by Piter Panjaitan (@piterpanjaitan)

The Save the Waves has a petition that currently sits at 17,000 signatures. It has a goal of having 25,000 people putting their names to express their alarm at the potential environmental risks the project may pose to Uluwatu’s fragile marine ecosystem.

It might not be much, but keeping eyeballs on the ongoing construction project is perhaps the only way to have any chance of mitigating the damage being done to one of surfing’s most iconic locations. Meanwhile, the rain keeps beating down in Bali, sending further cliff sediment and soil onto the reefs and into the water. We need to keep this issue alive.