Government maximises forest and land fire mitigation during prolonged dry season

The government is committed to maximising the prevention of forest and land fires amidst a prolonged dry season by utilising weather modification operations (OMC) and water bombing for firefighting. Following a meeting with Commission IV of the House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta on Wednesday (16/9), Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni explained that the Ministry of Forestry’s implementation of OMC is being coordinated with the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) and the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).

The government is maximising weather modification operations and water bombing to extinguish forest and land fires currently affecting several regions in Indonesia. During the meeting at the Senayan Parliament Complex, Raja Juli noted that for the creation of artificial rain, his ministry is coordinating with BMKG and BNPB to maximise rain seeds in areas impacted by forest and land fires.

Furthermore, Raja Juli stated that water bombing via helicopters is also being deployed in fire-affected areas that are inaccessible to ground-based teams.