Ministry of Forestry Records 15,477.9 Hectares of Forest and Land Fires in Riau During 2026

Pekanbaru (ANTARA) - The Sumatra Regional Fire Control Centre of the Republic of Indonesia’s Ministry of Forestry has recorded that the accumulated area of forest and land fires in Riau Province reached 15,477.9 hectares throughout the first semester of 2026. Head of the Sumatra Regional Fire Control Centre, Ferdian Krisnanto, stated that the figure is based on collaborative satellite imagery calculations and analysis by the Ministry of Forestry, the National Research and Innovation Agency, and the Ministry of Environment for the period of 1 January to 30 June 2026. Bengkalis Regency was the worst-affected area with 8,239.5 hectares burned, followed by Pelalawan Regency in second place with a total burned area of 4,582.0 hectares. Other regions also recorded significant impacts, including Indragiri Hilir Regency with 956.6 hectares, Dumai City with 607.1 hectares, Rokan Hilir Regency with 289.6 hectares, and Siak Regency with 281.1 hectares. Several other areas recorded burned areas below 200 hectares, namely Kepulauan Meranti Regency with 199.3 hectares, Kuantan Singingi Regency with 103.3 hectares, Kampar Regency with 90.1 hectares, and Indragiri Hulu Regency with 80.7 hectares. The smallest accumulated forest and land fire areas during this period were in Rokan Hulu Regency, which recorded 40.5 hectares, and Pekanbaru City, which recorded 8.4 hectares. ‘Once again, this is not just a matter of numbers, but it must serve as a concern and an important lesson for everyone to work together to continuously prevent forest and land fires and to respond as early as possible if fires occur in their areas,’ he said.