Haze to cloud western part of N. Sumatra
Haze to cloud western part of N. Sumatra
JAKARTA (JP): Haze due to forest fires is expected to linger
and envelop the western coastal area of North Sumatra for the
next three weeks, officials disclosed on Friday.
In a meeting with the Medan city administration, the head of
North Sumatra Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) Sutrisno
and the head of Regional Environmental Management Agency
(Bapedalda) Suangkupon Siregar said weather conditions were not
favorable enough to propel the haze farther.
The officials also warned residents in the area to be careful
of sparking new fires, especially those who live in drier areas.
They predict that dry weather will last till September. There
may be occasional rains but it will not be enough to clear the
haze particles.
Meanwhile, the smoky haze again enveloped the Polonia
International Airport, disrupting air traffic.
On Friday morning the BMG reported that visibility had dropped
again to about 1,000 meters, resulting in the delay of all
flights departing and heading to the airport.
The airport was closed till about noon on Thursday as the
visibility during most of the morning was only about 700 meters,
far below the minimum requirement of 1,200 meters for airflight.
The visibility gradually increased to 1,000 meters, and by
afternoon, it changed drastically to 1,500 meters.
Satellite pictures released by BMG indicate that the source of
the haze lingering in Medan came from 41 hotspots which have been
burning for the past week.
They are mainly located in Barumun forest, Labuhanbatu and
North Tapanuli.
In New York, an environmental expert from the World Resources
Institute (WRI) Charles V. Barber, said that Indonesia's
government has failed to create an effective mechanism to set
even the most minimum standards to manage its national forestry
resources.
"Indonesia's forestry policy is legalized and motivated by the
illicit timber industry," Barber said as quoted by Antara.
Barber has just written a report about forest fires and
forestry policy in Indonesia during a time of crisis and reform,
with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Yayasan Telapak Indonesia.
Barber warned that the forest fires will continue unless the
government changes its forestry policy.
WRI recommends that the government postpone the new concession
for oil palm and other plantation investors until the national
forest inventory is complete.
It also suggests a strong punishment for responsible parties.
(09)