Palembang, KOTABARI.COM – The province of South Sumatra (Sumsel) is once again in the spotlight due to forest and land fires (Karhutla) that have resulted in unhealthy air quality in the city of Palembang. Yulisman, the Executive Director of the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) in South Sumatra, stated that Sumsel has been a frequent victim of fires during the dry season and is one of the major contributors to the haze problem.
According to Yulisman, the trend of forest and land fires in Sumsel has continued since 2015, exacerbated by minimal rainfall and extreme drought conditions caused by El Nino, especially in the current year. The haze plaguing the region is not a natural disaster but rather a consequence of human activities, particularly forest and land fires.
Walhi has referred to Sumsel as the “haze factory” because the issue of haze keeps recurring, and efforts to prevent and extinguish the fires have been largely ineffective. There are various factors that render Sumsel’s landscape highly susceptible to fires during the dry season, including industrial activities such as oil palm plantations and industrial timber plantation (HTI) operations that cover significant land areas.
Yulisman mentioned that the area covered by HTI in Sumsel exceeds 1 million hectares, and the same applies to oil palm plantations. These activities have damaged the forests and peatlands, disrupted ecosystems, and altered the natural landscape, making the region more vulnerable to fires.
Yulisman also emphasized that the blame should not fall entirely on the local residents, as there are individuals responsible for these conditions. In the past, when peatlands were natural and forests were dense, fires rarely occurred during agricultural practices. However, with the current changes due to land concessions, HTI, and oil palm plantations, the ecosystem has been disrupted.
Yulisman suggested that the government take decisive action in Karhutla prevention. The community should not be the ones igniting these fires. Concession holders, such as HTI and oil palm plantation industries, should be held accountable for their respective landscapes.
“The government must act firmly. Forest and land fires should not become a project. Prevention should involve key stakeholders, and concession holders should be responsible for their landscape areas,” Yulisman stated.
With increasing concerns about poor air quality and the ecological impact of Karhutla in Sumsel, decisive action and cooperation among the government, industries, and the community will be crucial in effectively addressing this issue in a sustainable manner.