Indonesia needs long-term tactics to beat forest fires<\/p>\n
By Dian Suita<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (Antara): New hot spots have been detected in
\nKalimantan and Sumatra as a result of fires, which devastated
\nmillions of hectares of forest, not being entirely put out.<\/p>\n
The office of the State Ministry of Environment reported the
\nhot spots were located at a number of protected forests in Aceh,
\nNorth Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, Jambi, Bengkulu, Lampung,
\nCentral Kalimantan and East Kalimantan.<\/p>\n
A report on early fire detection conducted by the ministry
\nearly this month says the hot spots are burning under coal
\ndeposits which is common place in Indonesian forests.<\/p>\n
Embers have yet to cause major fires as rains helped dampen
\nthe threat, but the government warns that a disaster similar to
\nthat of 1997\/1998 is looming as the dry season approaches.<\/p>\n
Environmental expert Surna Tjahja Djajadiningrat of the
\nMinistry of Mines and Energy warns that East Kalimantan's
\nforests, which have 200 identified hot spots, is particularly
\nvulnerable.<\/p>\n
He calls on the government and environmental organizations to
\ntake the necessary precautionary measures in anticipation of a
\nfresh conflagration.<\/p>\n
The 1997\/1998 fires destroyed an estimated 10 million hectares
\nof forests in Kalimantan and Sumatra. The slash-and-burn land
\nclearance technique employed to open plantations were blamed for
\nthe disaster, which also badly affected Malaysia, Brunei and
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
Other culprits were poor land-use plans and forest management
\nby concessionaires as well as the government's slack supervision.
\nThe El Nino weather phenomenon worsened the situation.<\/p>\n
Experts agree the 1997\/1998 forest conflagration in Indonesia
\nwas a global environmental catastrophe.<\/p>\n
Its economic, social and biological impact reached as far as
\nMalaysia, Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines and Thailand. It was
\nbelieved to have affected the global climate.<\/p>\n
The World Wide Fund (WWF) and the Canadian Economic and
\nEnvironment Program for Southeast Asia (EEPSEA) put the financial
\nloss at more than US$4.4 billion.<\/p>\n
If estimates were accurate, it equaled 2.5 percent of
\nIndonesia's Gross National Product at the time.<\/p>\n
The forest fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra destroyed a
\nconsiderable amount of trees, plants, agricultural products and
\nbiodiversity. They also caused health problems and crippled
\ntourism in Indonesia and its neighboring countries, incurring a
\nloss of about $1.4 billion.<\/p>\n
Experts said Indonesia shouldered about 90 percent of the
\nloss. Hospitals in affected areas were crammed with people
\nadmitted for respiratory complaints.<\/p>\n
Revenue from tourism was said to have dropped by some $90
\nmillion in Indonesia, $300 million in Malaysia and $60 million in
\nSingapore as holidaymakers skipped the countries due to the haze.<\/p>\n
As forest fires have always caused substantial losses, it is
\nadvised that the Indonesian government prioritize precautionary
\nmeasures rather than act after the fire ignites.<\/p>\n
Environmentalist Jeffrey A. Sayer stresses the need for long-
\nterm solutions because the disaster occurs every dry season.<\/p>\n
Sayer, who is director of the Center for International
\nForestry Research (Cifor), says so far the Indonesian government
\nand donor countries have focused only on short-term measures,
\nwhich will not be effective.<\/p>\n
\"Most of the fire prevention projects are for short-term goals
\nand they do not touch on the root of the problem.<\/p>\n
\"Besides, the type of assistance that donor countries offer
\ndoes not fit the actual condition of Indonesian forests,\" he
\nsays. \"The donors think as if they are putting out the fire in
\ntheir own forests, which are different from Indonesian forests.\"<\/p>\n
He noted water bombing as a method to extinguish a forest fire
\nas a case in point. The method, he says, is effective only if the
\nforest area is small, the plants relatively homogeneous and the
\nwater source is at hand.<\/p>\n
If Indonesian forests catch fire this year, Indonesia and its
\ndonors do not have to waste money on short-term projects, he
\nsays.<\/p>\n
\"It would be better to spend 90 percent of the money on long-
\nterm projects.\"<\/p>\n
Solutions he proposes are protecting the remaining forested
\nland, defining land use, preparing land classification and making
\ntransparent laws on forestry.<\/p>\n
Besides, the Indonesian government should promote reward and
\nsupervision of forest concessionaires to minimize social
\ndisturbance and fire hazard.<\/p>\n
The result may not be seen in 10 years time but the proper
\nmeasures will raise hopes for better forest management and
\nneighboring countries will not have to worry about haze from
\nIndonesia every time the dry season comes.<\/p>",
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