{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1825024,
        "msgid": "asean-haze-risk-rises-to-highest-level-threatening-indonesia-and-neighbours-1782451214",
        "date": "2026-06-26 11:25:04",
        "title": "ASEAN Haze Risk Rises to Highest Level, Threatening Indonesia and Neighbours",
        "author": "",
        "source": "CNBC",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Environment",
        "summary": "The Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) has raised the 2026 transboundary haze risk to its highest 'red' category for Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, and Malaysia. The elevated threat is driven by the return of El Ni\u00f1o and a positive Indian Ocean Dipole, which are expected to create hotter and drier conditions. The report also highlights that Indonesia's push for B50 biodiesel could increase land-clearing pressure, adding to the economic and environmental challenges facing President Prabowo Subianto's administration.",
        "content": "<p>The Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) has placed\nthe 2026 haze risk for Southeast Asia in the highest category, warning\nof a significant threat to Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, and Malaysia.\nThe \u2018red\u2019 rating in the institute\u2019s Haze Outlook 2026 report signals\nthat conditions are ripe for severe transboundary haze, though it does\nnot guarantee an event will occur. The heightened risk is primarily\nattributed to the return of the El Ni\u00f1o weather phenomenon and a\npositive Indian Ocean Dipole, a combination that historically leads to\nprolonged hot and dry weather, reduced rainfall, and a greater\nlikelihood of land and forest fires. The report notes that similar\nclimatic patterns preceded major haze crises in 1997-1998, 2015, and\n2023.<\/p>\n<p>The report marks the first high-risk dry season faced by President\nPrabowo Subianto\u2019s administration. Data from Indonesia\u2019s forest fire\nmonitoring system, SiPongi, shows that land and forest fires have\nhistorically spiked during such periods, with 1.65 million hectares\nburned in 2019 and 1.16 million hectares in 2023. As of May 2026,\npreliminary data indicates 81,077 hectares have already been affected.\nThe government has shifted its approach by establishing a coordinating\ndesk under the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security\nAffairs, framing forest fires as a national security issue rather than\nsolely an environmental one. Measures include enhanced fire monitoring,\nair patrols, and support for community firefighting groups.<\/p>\n<p>However, the government faces significant fiscal constraints as it\nstrives to maintain the budget deficit below 3% of gross domestic\nproduct. This limits funding for essential prevention and mitigation\nefforts, such as weather modification operations, aerial patrols, and\nground-level firefighting. The Ministry of Forestry has reportedly\nprepared at least 35 weather modification operations to mitigate fire\nrisks as the dry season intensifies. Beyond weather, the SIIA report\nhighlights economic drivers of fire risk, particularly the disruption to\nglobal energy supplies and the resulting push for biofuels. Indonesia\u2019s\nplan to increase its mandatory biodiesel blend from B40 to B50 in 2026\nwould require an additional 4 million tonnes of crude palm oil annually,\npotentially increasing pressure to expand oil palm plantations and\nraising the risk of land clearing through fire.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asean-haze-risk-rises-to-highest-level-threatening-indonesia-and-neighbours-1782451214",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}