ANALYSIS OF VEGETATION QUALITY IN THE CIHONJE RIVER BORDER IN SUMEDANG REGENCY, WEST JAVA

• Main Author: Nafarisa Kamila, Nadia
• Format: Final Project
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/65522
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

The Cihonje River border is part of the Cipeles sub-watershed, Cimanuk watershed, which is located in Sumedang Regency, West Java. The decline in the quality of vegetation in river border areas can result in erosion of the soil which on a larger scale can cause landslides and flash floods as has occurred in the Cihonje River area some time ago. So far, there has been no mitigation and management of vegetation-based disasters in the area. The form of land use which is generally in the form of agriculture and residence is remembered as the main factor causing landslides and flash floods. Based on these conditions, it is necessary to conduct a study on the quality of vegetation cover in river border areas to determine recommendations for disaster mitigation actions. This study aims to determine the level of canopy density, vegetation quality, and the ability of vegetation to protect the river border area in Sumedang Regency, West Java. This study used the Forest Canopy Density (FCD) model for canopy density analysis, vegetation structure scoring method, vegetation analysis method, and measurement of Root Anchor Index (IJA) and Root Grip Index (ICA). The results of the canopy density in the Cihonje River border are divided into 5 classes, namely very low (1.85%), low (9.83%), medium (38.54%), high (38.37%), and very high. (11.41%). High and medium canopy density classes dominated with an area of 63.27 ha and 63.54 ha, respectively. High density in the form of a dense mixture of young and old thickets is mostly found on the cliffs upstream to the middle of the Cihonje River, while the medium density is a mixture of shrubs and young thickets which are quite dense in the middle to downstream. The quality of the vegetation structure is divided into 3 classes, namely, low quality at 5 points, medium quality at 2 points, and high quality at 3 points. The higher the canopy density, the higher the quality of the vegetation structure and the lower the level of disturbance. The results of the IJA calculation show that of the 5 tree species, 3 species are included in the high IJA category, namely Manglid (Manglietia glauca), Bendo (Artocarpus elasticus), and Ugandan mahogany (Khaya anthothaca), while the other 2 species are included in the medium category. namely Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) and Surian (Toona sinensis). The results of the ICA calculation show that the five species are classified in the medium category. The conclusion shows that the overall quality of vegetation in the Cihonje River border is still low.