Ministry of Forestry investigates forest fires in production forest area in South Sumatra
The Ministry of Forestry (Kemenhut) is investigating forest and land fires (karhutla) affecting 25 hectares of production forest within the Forest Utilisation Business Permit (PBPH) concession area of PT TCP in Musi Banyuasin Regency, South Sumatra.
In a statement confirmed from Jakarta on Friday, Director General of Law Enforcement (Gakkum) at the Ministry of Forestry Dwi Januanto Nugroho said the incident in Musi Banyuasin should serve as a warning to all forestry permit holders to strengthen protection efforts in their working areas during the fire-prone period.
“If intent, negligence, or non-compliance that causes fires is found, law enforcement will proceed. This serves as a warning to all permit holders that safeguarding and protecting their working areas is part of forestry business responsibility,” said Director General of Law Enforcement Januanto.
After the fires were successfully brought under control through the hard work of a joint team, the Sumatra Regional Forestry Law Enforcement Office of the Ministry of Forestry conducted field verification to identify the initial point of the fire and gather evidence as part of the law enforcement process.
Head of the Sumatra Regional Forestry Law Enforcement Office Hari Novianto, in the same statement, explained that based on initial verification results, the fire’s point of origin is suspected to have come from oil palm and areca nut plantation areas within the forest zone of the PT TCP PBPH area. These findings are still being investigated further to ascertain the source and cause of the fire, the status of land tenure, and the responsible parties.
He said the investigation is examining the possibility of intent or negligence, the involvement of other parties, and the permit holder’s compliance in carrying out fire protection and control obligations in its working area.
The team has also installed warning signs at the location to indicate that the area is under the supervision of law enforcement officials and is currently under investigation.
“We will investigate the cause of this fire professionally to determine whether or not there are criminal elements. If evidence of negligence or intent resulting in forest fires is found, every responsible party will be processed in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations,” said Hari Novianto.