Ministry says national park closures conditional on wildfire spread
Director General of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation of the ministry, Satyawan Pudyatmoko, told ANTARA at the Angke Nature Tourism Park here on Monday that, to date, there has been no decision to close any national parks other than Mount Bromo in East Java.
“There have been no closures of (other national parks) yet. It is highly conditional on the situation on the ground. For instance, the fires at Mount Gede Pangrango and Mount Rinjani were quickly brought under control, so no closures were necessary,” he explained during an event at the Angke Nature Tourism Park.
To prevent widespread forest and land fires during the current dry season, the ministry is focusing its monitoring efforts by stepping up security patrols across all conservation areas.
In addition to patrols, the government is intensifying educational outreach to communities residing near forests, urging them to avoid the careless use of fire. Authorities are also inspecting canal blocks in peatland areas to prevent extreme drought conditions.
Pudyatmoko noted that a total closure of a park is only implemented when fire management requires massive and effective ground firefighting operations, as was recently necessary at the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS).
The TNBTS Center officially closed all tourist access points to Mount Bromo starting Saturday (August 8) at 10 p.m. local time following expanding forest fires.
Head of the TNBTS Office Rudijanta Tjahja Nugraha confirmed that the closure applies to five entrance gates: Cemorolawang in Probolinggo, Wonokitri in Pasuruan, Jemplang and Coban Trisula in Malang, and Senduro in Lumajang.
The closure of all Mount Bromo tourist entrances will remain in effect until further notice to ensure visitor safety and expedite firefighting efforts conducted by a joint task force.
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Translator: Riezko Bima, Uyu Liman