Forest Fire Haze Likely To Worsen In Next Few Months - Indonesia

[hatrack]

"Haze from forest fires that delayed several flights in Pontianak on Saturday could worsen in Kalimantan and Sumatra provinces next month due to a lack of rain and continued land clearing, officials here warned on Sunday.

The officials blamed local administrations in Sumatra and Kalimantan for not taking tough measures to prohibit residents from burning forests to clear land for farming. "Our office cannot do anything but warn local administrations that it is their responsibility to seriously tackle the problem in their own areas," Sudariyono, the deputy minister for ecosystem maintenance at the Office of the State Minister for the Environment, said.

He said several companies could also be held responsible for burning the forest to open up land for plantations, though he refused to identify the companies. The government has banned slash-and-burn land clearance, but many companies and residents continue to ignore the ban.

EDIT

Sudariyono said the haze could be expected to get worse and spread to other islands and neighboring countries because little rain was expected to fall in September, while the burning of forests continued unabated. "The condition could worsen because people in those areas keep on burning the forest for farming. In addition, there is no indication that the rainfall will start soon," he said. He said his office had detected numerous new hot spots across Kalimantan and Sumatra, but added that he could not provide details on the fires until Monday."

EDIT