Forestry Minister says forest fire control trend during El Niño continues to improve

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni stated that Indonesia’s ability to control forest and land fires (karhutla) has continued to show improvement over the last few El Niño cycles. “If we look at the trajectory of forest and land fire management over the last few El Niño cycles, there is one thing we should be grateful for: our ability to control karhutla continues to improve,” the Minister said in a statement in Jakarta on Thursday. He explained that the area affected by karhutla during El Niño events has shown a consistent downward trend. During the 2015 El Niño, the burnt area was recorded at approximately 2.61 million hectares, dropping to 1.64 million hectares in 2019, and further declining to around 1.16 million hectares in 2023. Over the last two El Niño cycles, he continued, the area of karhutla was successfully reduced by up to 55.6 per cent compared to the 2015 conditions. According to Minister Raja Juli Antoni, this achievement is the result of strong collaboration among various parties, including the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), the National Police (Polri), regional governments, the Manggala Agni fire brigade, the Fire Care Community (Masyarakat Peduli Api), and the wider public. “Karhutla is not solely a forestry issue, nor merely an environmental issue, and not just a problem for certain regions. Karhutla is a shared problem whose impacts are felt by the entire nation,” said Raja Antoni. Although the karhutla graph during El Niño cycles shows a downward trend, Minister Raja Antoni reminded that vigilance must still be heightened. Up to May 2026, the area of karhutla was recorded at around 81,000 hectares, an increase compared to the same period during the 2019 and 2023 El Niño events. Furthermore, the BMKG predicts that this year’s dry season will arrive earlier, last longer, and be drier, with the peak occurring from July to September. “If all stakeholders continue to perform well, along with the role of the TNI, Polri, and community participation, we will certainly be able to win the fight against these forest and land fires,” said Minister Raja Antoni.