| Lake Paniai | |
|---|---|
| Lake type | Mountain lake |
| Basin countries | Papua, Indonesia |
| Surface area | 154 km² |
| Max. depth | 44 m |
| Surface elevation | 1,752 m |
| References | [1] |
The Paniai Lakes, originally known as the Wissel lakes, consist of the three large, freshwater lakes Paniai, Tigi, and Tage. They are located in the central highlands of West Papua province, Indonesia.[2] The largest of the three is Lake Paniai (Danau Paniai), while its immediate neighbor Lake Tage is the smallest.
Despite their considerable size (Lake Paniai alone is larger than Lago di Como), they were not known outside New Guinea until 1937. On 31 December 1936, the Dutch navy pilot Frits Julius Wissel, just weeks after first-ascending the highest mountain of New Guinea, and his crew flew over the lakes while making an aerial survey for the Dutch New Guinea oil company. He took photos and noticed many people in canoes, establishing that this mountainous region was populated.[3][4] During a follow-up flight by E.L.J. Haak on 15 February 1937, it was established that there were many settlements around the lakes, indicating a thriving agricultural society.[3] In November of that year, the Dutch Indies government named the group of lakes after Wissel. A small Dutch outpost was established here in 1938, but contact was cut off during the Second World War.[5]
The region of the Paniai Lakes, consisting of a depression between the Weyland and Sudirman ranges, is heavily populated.[6] The indigenous peoples of this area are called the Ekagi, or the Me.[4] Around the year 2000, as part of the Papua conflict ongoing since 1963, the surrounding forests were burned down by the military so that they could not harbor separatists. This resulted in increased sedimentation of Lake Paniai, and in 2011 the lake overflowed, flooding the surrounding area with up to 4 meters of water.[7]