Thick black haze blankets Jambi

Thick black haze blankets Jambi

Jakarta/Jambi/Riau

Thick black haze from hundreds of hectares of peat fires in three
regencies in Jambi province has covered Jambi city for four days
now.

Although current visibility is still considered at a normal
range of more than 100 meters, many drivers were observed with
their headlights on during the day.

The haze that has become thicker every day has forced
motorcyclists to cover their faces with handkerchiefs -- no mask
traders were seen in the area, nor were institutions passing out
free masks this year.

Although many residents have started to complain that the
thick haze stings their eyes and is causing them to develop
respiratory problems, the Jambi administration has yet to issue a
statement on the situation.

The peat fires have also burned down 100 houses at the
transmigration settlement of Sungai Gelam III in Batanghari
Regency.

No fatalities were reported in the fires that started on
Friday, but all residents of Sungai Gelam III were evacuated to
the nearby village of Sumber Agung.

It is feared that the fires could spread to nearby Sungai
Gelam II transmigration settlement due to strong winds, a large
number of tree stumps, and houses that were built too close
together.

Field reports state that both residents and officials of the
manpower and transmigration office have taken no action to put
out the fires.

In Pekanbaru, Riau, the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency
(BMG) reported that weather conditions were improving. Rain,
which fell from midnight on Monday through until Tuesday at 2.15
a.m., had swept away much of the haze.

A chicken-noodle-soup trader, Tukino, 55, had gladly welcomed
the rain. "Thank God, because of the heavy downpour last night
our well will be full again," he told The Jakarta Post on
Tuesday.

The Environmental Impact Management Agency in Pekanbaru said
that as of Monday, there were 130 hot spots spread across several
regions, including Siak and Rokan Hulu.

Environmentalist say that the government seems powerless to
act against the fires, which have sprung up in both agricultural
and forestry areas.

"This forest fires are the responsibility of the government.
Ministries should not blame each other, because they are supposed
to be one team -- the central government," said Emil Salim,
former state minister of the environment in a seminar on Forest
Management and Illegal Logging at the Center for Strategic and
International Studies (CSIS) on Tuesday.

Emil said that local administrations through to the central
government, law enforcers and local people were responsible for
the fires.

Head of the Forest Fire Laboratory Division at the Bogor
Institute of Agriculture (IPB) Bambang Hero Saharjo said that the
slash-and-burn land clearance method was dangerous.

He further said that the burning of peat caused the loss of
water reserves and could even cause floods, as rain water would
run to lower ground as the peat had lost its absorption capacity.

The peat layer contributes greatly to water conservation as it
is more porous than other soils. According to research conducted
by the forest fire laboratory, a 10 cm reduction in the peat
layer will cause the loss of 650 cubic meters of water reserves
per hectare.