Forest fire fighting shows results<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The concerted effort between the government, the
\nArmed Forces, locals and Malaysian firefighters has begun to show
\nresults as the fires raging on some 2,000 hectares of forest in
\nSumatra were successfully put out yesterday.<\/p>\n
Quoting a statement from the local Environmental Impact
\nManagement Agency, Antara said that a fire-fighting task force
\ncomprising 53 Malaysian firefighters, 100 soldiers and some 200
\nlocal people joined forces to put out the fires in Indragiri Hulu
\nregency, Riau.<\/p>\n
The agency also said there were no other hot spots found in
\nRiau, although some 440 hectares of peat land in Jambi's Tanjung
\nJabung, Bungo Tebo and Sorolangun regencies were still considered
\nvulnerable to fresh fires.<\/p>\n
The fires, which have also hit national parks, are threatening
\none of the world's most diverse collections of wildlife.<\/p>\n
In Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, hundreds of local people in
\nSembalun Bumbung village also managed to extinguish fires that
\nravaged some 70 hectares of Mt. Rinjani national park.<\/p>\n
Local government spokesman Tjok Suthendra Rai said the fires
\nat the national park did not reach an alarming level because they
\nonly hit about 70 hectares of dry brush around conservation
\nareas.<\/p>\n
The East Kalimantan administration revealed yesterday that
\nfinancial losses caused by the fires on 25,000 hectares of land
\nand forest in the province had reached more than Rp 62 billion
\n(US$21 million).<\/p>\n
Deputy governor Suwarna Abdul Fatah said: \"Most of the fire-
\nstricken areas in the province are now under control.\" Satellite
\nimaging showed that only a few hot spots were left.<\/p>\n
The fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra have caused a blanket of
\npoisonous haze that has affected aviation and millions of people
\nacross a vast area in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n
Thick smoke has also appeared in several areas in the
\nmountains of Sumbing, Lawu and Gedongsongo on the island of Java,
\nAntara reported.<\/p>\n
The government announced yesterday the arrest of 20 farmers
\nfor slash-and-burn methods to clear land in East Kalimantan. They
\nface lengthy prison terms if convicted.<\/p>\n
The clearing of land by timber companies by burning forests,
\ncombined with a drought that has been considered the worst ever
\nin the past half a century, has been blamed for the fires.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Forestry announced yesterday that 158 of 176
\ncompanies accused of burning forests might lose their licenses
\nfor failing to meet the government's deadline to prove their
\ninnocence.<\/p>\n
By Tuesday, 63 companies had submitted reports about their
\nland-clearing activities to the government, but only 17 of them
\nhad included the required data.<\/p>\n
There are 112 other companies which have not responded to the
\ngovernment's threat.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto has apologized to neighboring countries
\naffected by the haze, which the government has declared a
\nnational disaster. Malaysia, Thailand, the U.S., Japan and
\nAustralia have either offered or given assistance to help fight
\nthe forest fires that have caused the haze. (aan\/08)<\/p>",
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