Indonesia wildfires damage nearly 95,000 hectares of land in July alone, minister says

By Bernadette Christina

JAKARTA, Aug 18 (Reuters) – Wildfires burned nearly 95,000 hectares of land in Indonesia in July, almost doubling the damage done in the previous six months as the El Niño weather pattern intensified, data provided by the forestry minister showed on Tuesday.

Here are some details: 

• Forestry ministry data showed that 202,004 hectares (499,162 acres) of land had been hit by wildfire from January to July, surging from 107,465 hectares burned from January to June.

• Minister Raja Juli Antoni told a parliamentary hearing that by mid-August, the intensity of the El Niño index had already surpassed 2015, the last time a strong El Niño hit.

• However the land area affected by wildfire was smaller compared to the same period of 2015, when 600,000 hectares were damaged.

• The size of the affected areas “has already exceeded the levels seen in 2019 and 2023, but given that the current El Niño conditions are similar to those in 2015, it remains below the 2015 level. This is what we are working hard to address,” he told a parliamentary hearing.

• The minister said weather modification operations have been carried out in fire-prone provinces over the February to July period.

• Indonesia’s weather agency expects El Niño to last into early 2027, with the critical period for forest and land fires expected to peak from August to September.

• Authorities will reopen Bromo National Park after containing wildfires in the popular tourist destination on Indonesia’s Java island. More than 1,100 hectares of land in the park were affected.

(Reporting by Bernadette Christina; Editing by David Stanway)