INDONESIA BRACES FOR FOREST FIRES AS DRIER WEATHER CONDITIONS FORECAST by Fardah

Jakarta, Jan 26 , 2017(Antara) - Indonesia is bracing for forest and plantation fires, as the country is forecast to experience drought that could induce wildfires, from June to October this year.

         Despite the country being relatively free of haze smog arising from forest fires last year, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has urged all stakeholders to undertake early preventive measures against wildfires.

         The head of state has reminded ministers and regional authorities to remain vigilant against forest fires, starting from early this year.  
    "It is only January, but it is already dry. Hence, do not be careless. The BMKG (the meteorology, climatology and geophysics agency) has forecast that 2017 will be drier as compared to 2016," Jokowi remarked at the State Palace on January 23, 2017, while opening a coordination meeting on forest and plantation fires.

          The meeting was attended by Commander of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) General Gatot Nurmantyo; National Police Chief General Tito Karnavian; Coordinating Minister for Political, Law, and Security Affairs Wiranto; Environmental Affairs and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya; South Sumatra Governor Alex Noerdin; Jambi Governor Zumi Zola; and several other governors.

         During the meeting, Minister Wiranto said the meteorology agency had forecast that the climate in 2017 would be drier than that in 2016.

         Hence, command posts for early prevention need to be set up at the central, provincial, district, and rural levels to prevent forest fires, he stated.

         The minister outlined measures covering budget, human resources, and legal enforcement to be undertaken in the fight against forest and plantation fires as early as possible this year.  
    "First, the finance minister and the head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) are expected to allocate a special budget for forest fire prevention efforts," Wiranto noted.

        Secondly, the home affairs minister should revise Home Affairs Minister's Regulation No. 21 of 2011 on State Financial Guidance to allow local administrations to disburse budget for forest fire prevention measures at an early stage and not only during the emergency state.

         Thirdly, governors, district heads, and mayors should educate the local inhabitants to not set fires while clearing land for farming.

         Fourthly, plantation companies must abide by the regulations that ban the setting of fires to clear land.

         "Fifth, legal enforcers must closely supervise and sanction any one breaking the regulations," Wiranto affirmed.

         In 2015, Indonesia was hit hard by forest and plantation fires that had affected 2,089 million hectares of area and inflicted financial losses worth Rp220 trillion in 2015.

        The wildfires in 2015 affected commercial flights, offices, businesses, schools, and public health.

         Some 504 thousand people suffered from respiratory ailments, and flora and fauna habitats were damaged, as 2.6 million hectares of forest areas were gutted by wildfires.

         Based on monitoring data of the NOAA satellite, the number of hotspots in 2016 had decreased by 82.14 percent compared to that in 2015, while the Terra and Aqua satellites showed a drop of 94.58 percent.

         "On this good occasion, I would like to thank everyone who has carried out this big job," President Jokowi remarked, adding that he was optimistic of zero hotspots being recorded this year.

         "Although I know it would be impossible, however, we have to work hard to anticipate it," the head of state pointed out.

         In 2015, a 150-day emergency response period was declared, while in 2016, it was nil.

         The size of peatland and non-peatland areas gutted by fires also decreased by 83.21 percent in 2016, as compared to that in 2015.

         It was also contributed by the fact that the public has become more aware of the importance of clearing land without using fire.

         Besides this, La Nina natural phenomenon, which prolonged the rainy season in several regions, also helped in stopping forest fires in 2016.

         Moreover, ministries and institutions coordinated with the local administrations in nine provinces, prone to forest fires, to closely monitor hotspots during last year.

         The ministries and institutions, include the environmental affairs and forestry ministry; agriculture ministry; the meteorological, climatology, and geophysics agency; National Aeronautic and Aerospace Agency; National Disaster Mitigation Agency; TNI; and the National Police (Polri).

         The TNI, Polri, and other relevant stakeholders have also implemented a capacity building program to help train fire fighters and set up task forces against forest fires in the nine provinces.

         Moreover, forest fire control brigades have also been established in 10 forestry-related units in five provinces: South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and Papua.

         A total of 15,410 canals in peatland areas, 2,581 ponds, and 516 artesian wells have been built to store water to extinguish forest fires.

         Stringent legal enforcement was also implemented, including by revoking the business licenses of three plantation companies, freezing licenses of 16 others, and issuing warnings to 115 companies.

         The significant drop in last year's forest fires was also owing to intensified on-field patrols, including by the military and police personnel.

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(T.F001/A/BESSR/A/Yosep) 26-01-2017