EVALUATION OF MUD SETTLING POND PERFORMANCE IN A SALT POND ENVIRONMENT IN LOSARANG DISTRICT, REGENCY OF INDRAMAYU, WEST JAVA, INDONESIA

Abstract

Losarang District, located in the Indramayu Regency, is one of the prominent salt producers in Indonesia. Like other producer districts, Losarang is faced with a challenge: too many unwanted substances in the raw water. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the efficiency of a mud-settling pond and a series of breakwaters in reducing the suspended sediment content. This study included field measurement and numerical modeling. First, field measurement is conducted to obtain bathymetry, topography, water level, current velocity, and sediment sampling. The data is then utilized to construct numerical models using Delft3D-FLOW for global models and a Surface-water Modelling System for local models. The models performed well and resulted in a good validation result. Two scenarios were tested, with and without a settling pond. It is found that the settling pond successfully reduces the suspended sediment. Furthermore, it is recommended to maintain the depth of the settling pond by planning routine dredging.