Forest and land fires are never merely a matter of flames. Behind a\nsingle hotspot lies a much broader landscape of issues: weather changes,\ndrought, soil characteristics, peat conditions, vegetation cover, land\nuse, human activity, concessions, road networks, spatial governance, and\nthe state\u2019s capacity to read threats before they escalate into\ndisasters.<\/p>\n
This is why forest and land fires (karhutla) should be viewed as a\ntest of the nation\u2019s geographical intelligence sensitivity. The question\nis not simply whether the state can deploy water-bombing helicopters\nonce thousands of hectares have burned. The more important question\narises much earlier: is the state capable of knowing where risks are\nforming, why certain areas are becoming more vulnerable, who controls\nand utilises that space, where fire and smoke are likely to move, and\nwhat actions must be taken before the fire spreads?<\/p>\n
This question becomes increasingly relevant at the end of August\n2026. On 28 August 2026, monitoring by the Ministry of Forestry\u2019s\nSiPongi system, using NASA Terra\/Aqua, SNPP, and NOAA-20 satellites,\ndetected 18,065 hotspots nationally\u2014the highest in daily monitoring\nthroughout 1\u201328 August 2026. Central Kalimantan recorded 7,703 hotspots,\nfollowed by West Kalimantan with 3,384, South Kalimantan with 1,354,\nSouth Sumatra with 1,036, Jambi with 272, and Riau with 191.<\/p>\n
This data must be interpreted carefully. A hotspot does not\nautomatically signify a fire event. The Ministry of Forestry emphasises\nthat a hotspot is merely an indication of surface temperature anomalies\nobtained through satellite remote sensing, which still requires\nverification or ground checks on the ground. It is precisely in the gap\nbetween the indication from the sky and the reality on the ground that\nthe quality of geographical intelligence is tested.<\/p>\n
Reading Fire Before it Grows<\/p>\n
Geographical intelligence is not merely the ability to create maps.\nIn a more substantive sense, geographical intelligence is the ability to\ncollect, integrate, analyse, and translate various location-based\ninformation to answer at least five questions: what is happening, where\nis it happening, why is it happening in that location, how is it\ndeveloping, and what are the implications for national and community\ninterests.<\/p>\n
Regarding the issue of forest fires, the instruments to answer these\nquestions are actually quite abundant. These include hotspot data and\nsatellite imagery, rainfall and dry-day information, wind direction and\nspeed, the Fire Weather Index, surface fuel drought levels, peat\nconditions, forest cover, river and canal networks, concession\nboundaries, land use, settlement density, and records of previous fire\nlocations.<\/p>\n
BMKG even provides a forest fire warning system that processes\nvarious meteorological parameters such as the Fine Fuel Moisture Code,\nDuff Moisture Code, Drought Code, Build Up Index, Initial Spread Index,\nand Fire Weather Index. Through SPARTAN, BMKG can provide information\nregarding weather conditions that support the occurrence and spread of\nfires.<\/p>\n
When all these layers of information are overlaid, the state should\nno longer merely possess a hotspot map, but rather a threat probability\nmap. From there, it can be determined which areas should be patrolled\nfirst, which peatlands require wetting, which locations are prone to\nrecurring fires, the nearest water sources, the fastest access routes to\nlocations, threatened settlements, and the potential direction of smoke\nmovement.<\/p>\n
With the rapid development of remote sensing technology, Geographic\nInformation Systems (GIS), artificial intelligence, and spatial data\nanalysis, such capabilities are no longer futuristic. However, our\nproblem is shifting: it is not merely a lack of data, but the ability to\nconnect data into knowledge, and knowledge into decisions.<\/p>\n
Who is Responsible?<\/p>\n
This is the vital question to answer. Within the Indonesian\ngovernment structure, the term \u2018geographical intelligence\u2019 in the\ncontext of forest fires does not reside under the sole authority of one\nagency, but is more accurately understood as a cross-institutional\nanalytical function. Therefore, responsibility must be viewed as a\nchain.<\/p>\n
At the most fundamental layer is the Geospatial Information Agency\n(BIG). Based on Presidential Regulation Number 128 of 2022, BIG is a\nnon-ministerial government agency responsible for geospatial information\ntasks, including basic geospatial information, thematic geospatial\ninformation, and geospatial information infrastructure. BIG also holds a\nstrategic function in the integration and synchronisation of national\ngeospatial information.<\/p>\n
Thus, BIG holds a vital position as the architect of national spatial\nstandards and interoperability. BIG ensures that maps from various\nministries and local governments do not use different coordinate\nsystems, standards, scales, and references. Without that foundation, the\nintegration of forest fire data could easily result in erroneous\nanalysis. However, BIG is not the commander of fire suppression.<\/p>\n
At the next layer are ministries and agencies acting as producers of\nthematic information. BMKG is responsible for providing meteorological\nand climatological analysis: drought, rainfall, wind direction, surface\nfuel conditions, and fire hazard indices.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Forestry, through SiPongi, the Directorate of Forest\nFire Control, Manggala Agni, and the forestry structures in the regions,\nplays a direct role in hotspot detection, ground checks, patrols,\nprevention, and fire control in forested areas and related landscapes.\nDuring the August 2026 operations, the government even mobilised 12,880\npersonnel, involving Manggala Agni, the TNI (Military), Polri (Police),\nBNPB, BPBD, local governments, businesses, and volunteers.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Environment\/Environmental Management\nAgency (KLH\/BPLH) provides\u2026<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/forest-fires-and-the-test-of-geographical-intelligence-1788336276", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }