Land and forest fires in Indonesia intensified over the past month, with about 182,000 hectares of land and forests destroyed in July alone—almost double the total burnt area during the first half of this year.
Since the beginning of this year, the total burnt area in Indonesia has reached 285,000 hectares, roughly equivalent to three times the size of Jakarta. Most hotspots are concentrated in West Kalimantan, South Papua, East Kalimantan, and Central Kalimantan.
Some regions in Southeast Asia have already been affected by haze from Indonesia’s forest fires, but Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nabil said that Singapore and Malaysia have not yet made any formal complaints to Indonesia regarding the haze issue.
Nabil also said that Jakarta has launched joint monitoring and information-sharing efforts under the "ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution." This agreement, signed decades ago, aims to address issues such as haze, including the establishment of a regional command center, which Jakarta activated just a few months ago.
Nabil stated: "Regardless of whether other countries lodge complaints, domestically we are conducting patrols, aerial water bombing, firefighting, and weather modification operations, and we are continuously taking legal action."
Some regions in Southeast Asia have already been affected by haze from Indonesia’s forest fires, but Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nabil said that Singapore and Malaysia have not yet made any formal complaints to Indonesia regarding the haze issue.
Nabil also said that Jakarta has launched joint monitoring and information-sharing efforts under the "ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution." This agreement, signed decades ago, aims to address issues such as haze, including the establishment of a regional command center, which Jakarta activated just a few months ago.
Nabil stated: "Regardless of whether other countries lodge complaints, domestically we are conducting patrols, aerial water bombing, firefighting, and weather modification operations, and we are continuously taking legal action."