KLH: El Niño exacerbates fires at Putri Cempo landfill

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Environment (KLH) stated that the El Niño phenomenon, which has caused prolonged drought, is exacerbating fires at the Putri Cempo Landfill in Surakarta, Central Java.

“Putri Cempo covers 17 hectares, and 2.4 hectares have already burned. If not addressed immediately, the fire could spread. It initially started in Zone D, a small area, but due to El Niño, wind, and the fact that the waste is still in an open dumping state, it has jumped to Zone B. Zone B is the largest waste pile area in Putri Cempo,” said the Director of Waste Management at KLH, Melda Mardalina, during a media discussion in Jakarta on Friday.

She emphasised that the government is currently striving to extinguish the flames at the landfill, noting that the process cannot be performed solely from above but must also target the interior of the waste piles.

“Hoses must be inserted into the waste piles to prevent the fire from spreading deeper. We are currently requesting data from the Surakarta City Environmental Agency (DLH), but as they are busy with firefighting efforts, we will follow up later to assess the condition of the piles. If we only use aerial bombing but embers remain underneath, the fire will resurface,” she said.

She explained that the presence of unsegregated, mixed waste at the Putri Cempo landfill is also worsening the fires in the area.

Consequently, the government has issued Circular Letter of the Minister of Environment/Head of the Environmental Control Agency (BPLE) Number 11 of 2026, providing guidelines on increasing preparedness and anticipation of landfill fires during extreme heat conditions. Under this policy, local governments must immediately prohibit the disposal of organic waste at landfills, allowing only residual waste to be brought to the site.

“We at KLH have also formed a Landfill Fire Task Force, which has handled 23 fire incidents so far, involving both official and illegal landfills,” she added.