Oil Spill Detection to Protect The Marine Ecosystem in Karawang Waters

Mohamad  Mahfudz; Rian  Nurtyaman; Rudie Rachmat  Atmawidjaja; Yudi  Firmansyah; Rina Muthia  Harahap; Diah Kirana  Kresnawati

doi:10.24996/ijs.2026.67.10.30

Authors

Mohamad Mahfudz Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0385-8494
Rian Nurtyaman Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
Rudie Rachmat Atmawidjaja Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
Yudi Firmansyah Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
Rina Muthia Harahap Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia
Diah Kirana Kresnawati Geodetic Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Pakuan University, Jl. Pakuan Po. Box 452, Bogor, West Java, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24996/ijs.2026.67.10.30

Keywords:

Sentinel-1A imagery, oil spill, adaptive threshold, VV and VH polarization, Karawang waters

Abstract

Indonesian waters frequently experience pollution from oil spills, such as the incident in Karawang Waters in July 2019, when oil and gas leaked from the YYA-1 well on the Offshore North West Java Block, owned by PT. Pertamina Hulu Energi resulted in marine pollution. Spatial detection of oil spill distribution is necessary to analyze the characteristics, extent, and direction of oil spread. Detection was carried out using remote-sensing radar technology that can penetrate clouds, with the adaptive threshold method for faster, more efficient detection. Sentinel-1A imagery with VV and VH polarization was used on July 18, August 11, September 16, and October 10, 2019. The detection results indicated that the oil spill spread westward from July to September, and was cleaned by October. Detection using VV polarization yielded better results than detection using VH polarization. In July, the extent of the oil spill reached 27.524 km² (VV polarization) and 19.521 km² (VH polarization). In August, the area decreased to 10.386 km² (VV polarization) and 8 km² (VH polarization). In September, the oil spill covered 3.277 km² (VV polarization) and 2.245 km² (VH polarization), while in October, no oil spill was detected.