RRI.CO.ID, Tangerang – The National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) is developing national water resilience technology to anticipate the impacts of El Niño, following President Prabowo Subianto’s directive to reduce drought risks.

BRIN Head Arif Satria said his agency presented various water technology innovations to the President during a limited meeting on extreme weather at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday, July 28, 2026.

Arif explained that BRIN introduced 13 technologies grouped into four main categories, all designed to strengthen national water resilience in the face of climate change.

The first category is weather modification technology, which can now be implemented more efficiently using the latest methods. One example is deploying drones to disperse Dumikron, a sodium chloride (NaCl) material sized 2–5 microns.

“The second category is marginal water technology, including biofiltration for brackish and peat water, as well as wastewater and seawater, such as desalination technology,” Arif said.

The third category focuses on exploring underground rivers using isotope technology, ground‑penetrating radar (GPR), and other methods. The fourth involves utilizing fresh groundwater that flows into the sea through coastal aquifers, known as fresh submarine groundwater discharge.

According to Arif, President Prabowo is paying special attention to seawater desalination, underground river exploration, and the use of coastal groundwater. “The President has asked BRIN to strengthen desalination technology and categories three and four, which focus on exploring underground rivers on land and in coastal areas,” he said.

BRIN has also coordinated with the Ministry of Public Works (PU) to accelerate implementation in several priority locations. “BRIN and the Ministry of PU are currently coordinating to speed up action steps in several locations,” Arif added.

Meanwhile, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) is preparing measures to mitigate prolonged drought in Greater Jakarta. One of these is a weather modification operation, or artificial rain.

BMKG Head Teuku Faisal Fathani said the operation will be carried out depending on field conditions. “In Jakarta, it’s situational. BMKG is working with the Jakarta Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) to assess conditions. Once there has been a long enough period without rain, the weather modification operation will be conducted,” Teuku said. (Misni Parjiati)