Integrating Strategic Environmental Assessment into Regional Development Planning for Sustainable Development in Bireuen Regency

Abstract

Regional planning in Bireuen has to respond to basic-service needs while also dealing with pressure on watersheds, forested land, and areas exposed to hydro-meteorological hazards. This paper examines how far the 2025-2029 Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is carried into the Regional Medium-Term Development Plan (Indonesian term: Rencana Pembangunan Jangka Menengah Daerah/RPJMD), rather than remaining a separate compliance document. A qualitative case-study approach was used. The SEA document was coded against five dimensions of integration and traced to programs, indicators, annual targets, agency responsibilities, and spatial references. Interviews of eight informants were used to interpret gaps in implementation. Among the 266 SDG indicators screened in the SEA, the largest problem was the absence or weakness of data, not poor performance alone. Several recommendations could be followed into RPJMD policy directions and programs, but the chain became less complete when ecological baselines, location-specific safeguards, financing, and monitoring responsibilities were examined. This weakness was most evident for forest cover, catchment rehabilitation, recharge areas, and land-use control. Drawing on these findings, the study proposes a staged SEA-RPJMD traceability model that links environmental diagnosis with planning choices, spatial safeguards, responsible agencies, budget decisions, and annual review. The model offers a practical way to keep the Peusangan and Jambo Aye catchments, forest-cover functions, and green open-space controls visible in regional development decisions.